A Mother’s Story: Grieving a child on Mother’s Day
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – For many, Mother’s Day can be a bittersweet reminder for mothers who have lost a child.
Rosy Bucio knows all too well what grieving on Mother’s Day feels like.
Her path to grief hit hard when her daughter Nina passed away from a rare childhood cancer at age 5.
"In the summer of 2010 ... the week before she was supposed to start kindergarten ... got diagnosed with terminal brain tumor ... t’s called DIPG ... diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma," said Bucio.
Before discovering this terminal diagnosis, bucio had plans to take nina shopping for school supplies.
"You know little outfits in her backpacks to start school ... and she was so excited to start school with her big brother," said Bucio.
Bucio’s life changes forever.
"Our entire world was destroyed and turn upside down," said Bucio.
Even though Bucio lost her daughter several years ago, not a day has gone by that the mother of three doesn’t think about Nina.
"You never let go of that hope to find that miracle and when she passed away I remembered … she's the miracle … having her for this time was the miracle," said Bucio.
But bucio wasn’t alone.
She turned to Hospice of Santa Barbara for help.
"When people have lost a loved one they’re struggling a lot of times with just making sense out of their lives ... and so our trained counselors work with people so that they’re better able to kind of cope with their lives," said director of strategic advancement Charles Caldwell of Hospice of Santa Barbara.
“I would not be the mom, the wife that the daughter, the sister, the friend, the professional that I am if I hadn’t spent those four years receiving the unbelievable grief counseling and services through Hospice of Santa Barbara," said Bucio.
While Bucio believes the grief after losing a child never really ends, she encourages others to reach out.
"Send a message even if it’s a text message call and say their name share those memories that you have … some of the most incredible mother’s day gifts that i’ve had over the years is when people reach out and say rosie i just wanted to tell you about this memory that I had a Nina this week," said Bucio.
For more information on resources at Hospice of Santa Barbara, visit: https://www.hospiceofsb.org/.
