Surviving the Death of a Spouse
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"If you're going through Hell, keep going." -- Winston Churchill
Linda Palucci, widow of Eugene Palucci, did just that when she lost her husband to a brain tumor and cancer on March 21, 1992 after a long, desperate struggle. She went through Hell, yes, but she kept going.
After her long, stress-filled ordeal trying to cope with Gene's illness and death, she felt it was important to continue writing down her thoughts to help work her way through the aftermath. She later felt that her experience could, perhaps, help others cope with their grief after the death of a spouse. That's why she decided to publish the story of Gene's suffering and her own very personal struggle throughout his illness and after his death.
"Out of the Slippery Pit"
Linda tells her story openly and vividly through her tears, often taking from the diary she kept throughout that horrific time. Chipmunka Publishing Co. of the United Kingdom, an organization dedicated to mental health issues and "improving the way the world thinks about mental health," published Linda's story recently in an ebook titled, "Out of the Slippery Pit."
"I sat there with tears I could not restrain, running down my cheeks," Linda relates in her ebook. "It has been almost one year. When do you begin to feel like a person again?"
She tells of joining a group for widows and widowers called THEOS, an acronym for They Help Each Other Spiritually, noting, "It's helpful to associate with those who have survived widowhood for various lengths of time."
A Personal Theory
"I believe only someone who has experienced the death of a spouse can really understand the pain and confusion," Linda wrote. "Maybe only children, as I am, can adjust simply because we start out alone. We had only ourselves to depend on when we were young. I don't know if this is true or not, just a personal theory. Or, it makes us feel more alone."
Gene Palucci was a personal friend, and a neighbor, when we both lived in Darien, Conn. The only son of Eugene and Margaret Palucci, he was a native of adjacent Stamford where he grew up with his sisters, Audrey and Geri.
He was a likable, happy-go-lucky guy with a good disposition and a great sense of humor. He and Linda raised four boys, Russ, Scott, Chris and Greg and a girl, Cheryl, in Darien. Later they moved to nearby Bridgeport.
Little League Manager
A quintessential family man, Gene was a Little League baseball manager for more than 10 years as well as a Boy Scout leader. Despite his other numerous activities, he served as a volunteer firefighter with the Noroton Fire Department, one of three volunteer departments in the town of Darien, which lies between the cities of Stamford and Norwalk.
A U.S. Navy veteran, Gene learned to drive large rigs when he was in the service. Linda says he joined the U.S. Navy because he loved the water, but he was stationed in Tennessee. He told Linda the only time he saw any ships was in the Hudson River when he drove over the George Washington Bridge. As a civilian after his discharge from the Navy, he drove a variety of trucks, moonlighting often as a limousine driver, taking travelers to the LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy airports in New York.
Cancer Survivor
Linda, who was born in 1940, daughter of Larry and Ruth Northrup, lives in Trumbull, Conn., near Bridgeport, where she works part-time in a gift shop at the Beardsley Zoo She began her work career as a long distance telephone operator. Since Gene's death, Linda has had to face her own physical challenges. She is a cancer survivor, but first had to undergo a laryngectomy.
In discussing her ebook, Linda said, "This is my story of the death and first year of widowhood. It is all true. I wrote it to try and make sense of what was happening. It still hurts; that is the best way to describe it. It Hurts! A pain in my stomach like someone punched me, took my breath away. I really did not think I could go on alone. You never know, you just never know."
Linda's World Changes
She also talks of how her world changed when, in the doctor's office with Gene, they learned the reason for Gene's headaches and double vision.
"It's a brain tumor, inoperable," the doctor declared.
She said her happy life fell into "The Slippery Pit."
"When we lose our spouse," she said, "we are not ourselves any more. After 32 years, nowhere near enough time, I would be alone again. I could not even grasp it. My mind could not accept it."
In her ebook, Linda tells of meeting three other "gals" at THEOS and of going to a few singles' dances. She describes her experience at that first dance as "rough."
"I sat there wondering what am I doing here? The men were not appealing, and the music was too loud. I felt dead inside."
'I Can't Feel the Music'
"Rosemary, the proprietor, asked why I was not dancing. I burst out, 'I can't feel the music!' This was true; the music was gone. Nothing seemed important."
"In the beginning a widow can sit at home and cry," Linda said. "After a while, 'they' say she must get back into the world, pick up the pieces and make a new life; like the Phoenix from the ashes of before."
Linda Palucci's ebook is available in paperback, too here
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Support Groups Can Be Helpful to the Bereaved
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William,
Very touching story!! She sounds like such an insirational woman!
Im sure this book, which may not be as popular as the Harry Potter books, but i am damn sure it will be of great help for those in need! as much as Harry Potter is entertaining!
Thanks for sharing!
I would say 'I would have like Gene to have passed my way."
I have had many deaths in our family but in fifty years no spouse. Thank God. I do not know how I would feel if that tragedy happened to me.
A Magic hub.
thank you
She is so right that you cannot understand living through the death of a spouse until you've experienced. My husband was my soulmate. He died in an accident at age 27, and left a 10 month old son who still wonders to this day what it would have been like to know his dad.
Thank you for this hub. I'm sure her book will help so many people. I wish I had had it 22 years ago.
Life and death. We all share them both. How sad that only in the latter are we ever truly equal.
Losing a spouse must be like walking in a hallway and having the next step being an incomprehensible experience into a standedness in outer space.
Great article. Best wishes to everyone that has lost a spouse.
Losing a spouse is terrible, and I speak from personal experience. I lost my first Husband from Bowel Cancer. We had been together about 8 years, married for the last three of them. The abdominal pains he had been experiencing in his final weeks were attributed to Irritable Bowel Syndrome or Diverticulitis by the Doctors, and as the colonoscopy was not possible when attempted because of the pain it caused my Husband we left things as they were for several more weeks. I was only 31 and he was 48. When I did finally have to call an ambulance to rush him to hospital one Sunday, they quickly operated and found he was riddled with inoperable bowel Cancer. I had to hide this from him for two days until he was strong enugh to be told that he may only have between 6 weeks and 6 months to live. His first response when told by the Doctor was, "well, when your time's up, it's up", to which the Doctor said, "I hope if I am ever given news like this myself I take it as well as you have done". Two weeks later my Husband was a living skeleton, asking the nurses to help him die and incoherant because of all the morphine he was on. We finally got him home for two final days, and then he died at home with me holding his hand. This was incredibly traumatic, and not helped by the fact his family treated me appallingly after he died. I wouldn't wish this experience on my worst enemy, and if I could have taken the pain and disease from him and on to myself I would have. My heart goes out to those going through simliar expereinces, or those who have already been through what I went through in one form or another.
I am so sorry to hear you have been through this too.
Hi William,
I think the hardest part of losing my spouse was in grasping the reality that yes, he was gone. Unlike Linda, i did not join a group, probably because I had enough family and friends watching out for me.
I had no idea you also lost your spouse, and for that I am truly sorry. I share your grief. God bless, William, and know you are not alone.
You're right William. I have friends who did just that and it helped a great deal. If you ever want to talk further about your loss, feel free to email me. I'm a good listener :)
Just keep hanging in there William. Everyone handles grief in their own way. You'll find your way and honestly, in time you'll find your peace.
I do believe people are finding comfort in our words. Thanks so much for stopping by.
I, too, have experienced that numbness of being told, it is brain cancer in the worst possible place. We were told this on 04/23/08. But the next day, the doctors said, no wait, it is colon, liver, lung and brain cancer. He had zero symptoms, until it reached his brain. He had a MRI on 03/10/08 of his head that showed NOTHING and then on 04/24/08 it showed up? The doctors would not give us a time frame and saddly he died on 05/23/08. He had just turned 58 a few days before. It was such a shock and so many things that have happened to me since then. I believe in God, but I just don't understand why He has given me so many trials since then.
To lose a spouse, relative or close friend can be traumatic. When we trust in the Lord and understand our relationship with Him and our lost ones, we can be comforted. When we feel the futility of grieving hopelessly and endlessly, we know that life goes on and must accept the consequence and snap out of it. We should thank the Lord that we had enjoyed the closeness of the departed for a certain period, but life continues on just as the sun rises and sets. Trust in God that He still has something in life for us to go on living, maybe a son or daughter or a grandchild to look forward to. Grieving takes time, but it will pass. Look forward to the future when you will meet him or her in the future life. God bless.
You help in a way so thank you. My Husband Jim ,of almost 38 years found in March 2007 he had a Stage Four Glioblastoma Brain Tumor. Third in his family in under ten years. He fought bravely for almost two years.We lost him Jan.24th 2009. After Surgery and Lifetime radiation I found out about Dr.H Friedman at Duke Brain Institute.He offered hope with a then non-FDA approved drug " Avastin ". So we lived life with gusto....several times with no cancer on his MRI.We talked, loved ,fished, cried and held on.My sadness is devastating but I think what if we had never found each other at all? Priceless he was to me and our 36 year old son .Peace to you all
William, thanks for visiting my hub about coping with loss. I fully understand Linda's feeling that only someone who has gone through it can understand it. I felt that way about losing my son. Others around me tried to help, but they had no idea what I was feeling and the words to express it didn't come very easily in the beginning. What Linda has done by writing the ebook is a valuable resource for others like her and it probably helped her in dealing with it as well.
I joined a local grief support group but I didn't find it very helpful since a couple of particular people there wanted to insist at every single meeting that THEIR loss was much worse than anyone else there. I really didn't wish to compete for who had been hurt the worst. Because this gentleman had lost two grandchildren, a son, and a wife of 50 years he felt qualified to tell us which loss was the worst. I got the most help from reading anything I could get my hands on and visiting a website that had message boards for each type of loss so that I could talk to others just like me and do it anonymously and in the privacy of my own room.
My husband died on Sept.30, 2009 from complications from Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, Congestive Heart Failure, and Prostate Cancer. I promised him when we got the diagnosis of Alzheimer's that I would not place him in a nursing home. With the help of Hospice and the VA Home Care Program, I was able to keep my promise. The last year has been so hard but he is no longer in pain and suffering. If it were not for his pain and suffering, I would have him back with me to answer where we are and tell him our address a 1000 times a day. I miss him so much but I am surrounded by his love still and he comes to visit me and turns the lights on and off and vibrates our bed like he did before he died when he started his ascension. He was able to see into Heaven 3 weeks before he died and was overwhelmed by the Love and Beauty. He described to me daily the Love and beauty of heaven. In this I find much comfort.
William, how kind of you to try to bring this issue to the fore. Well done ...
On January 24, 2011 my husband of 38 years had a seizure at work. I will never forget the words in the emergency roon "Your husband has a brain tumor and it is not good". He started oral chemo and radiation right away. After 3 1/2 weeks into he began nose bleeds and had blood counts done. Platelets .7 yes that is .7 He went to the hospital and received platelets and had an reaction. He went home that evening and that's when everything started going down hill fast. He developed a fever and had problems standing. He is now hospitalized no white cells left and very few platelets. Received more platelets last night and is receiving meds tonight to try and restore white cell count. The Dr. said this will be painful. Great one thing leads to another. He was given 2 weeks to 2 months without any treatment. Now I;m wondering if he will even make the 2 months.
Mike passed away April 1, 2011. Diagnosed on Jan 24, 2011. The oral chemo Temodar destroyed all of his white cells and his platelets were low from radiation. He was 1/2 way through his treatments. He faced this horrific brain cancer with grace and dignity. He will forever be in our hearts. We love you Mike.
My wife died at age 26 from Breast Cancer back in Nov. 2010. It is that hardest thing in the world especially as I go on raising our young daughter. I must say it's almost 5 months since her death and things do get easier but, losing a spouse is definately a life changing thing, and it's hard to adjust to. Although I knew her life would be cut short due to the cancer, I never would have thought I would be widowed before the age of 30. Very hard thing to deal with!
Good read. My husband died of a brain tumor in 2003 so I can relate to Linda and all she went through and is going through. What I found out is we are stronger than we think. Rated up!
Thanks William for sharing this information with us. I am sure that it will help many people. And I am so sorry for your loss.
My mother-in-law only had her husband for exactly 3 years and my husband (their son) was only seen by his father exactly one day (because of WW2) before his father died. My mother was widowed at age 55 and lived to be 83 before she died. Selfishly, I hope that I die before my husband. I can't imagine facing life without him. I have several good friends that have become widows at early ages. Such a difficult time in one's life!
Hopefully you have great support from family and/or friends.
I am so very sorry. I want to thank you for sharing this. Losing a spouse is painful and changes the survivor forever. Your hub will be of help to others. Blessings.
William - One of our hub family members, H P Roychoudury just lost his wife. Please go to his latest hub and leave him a link to this one. It might help him. It would be nice if our wonderful hub family pay him a visit at this time. Thank you so much!
I am a victim. I realize what tragedy is. I share with the grief. Look to my grief in my Hub- “Sharing of Grief with Hub-Family”.
I lost my husband of 37 1/2 yrs to cancer this past April/2011. I'm also a cancer survivor of 17 yrs myself. Never did I think that I would be a widow at 61. Thank you for sharing this story. I've also read through all of the comments and I can feel a connection to all of them.
i lost my spouse 1-24=09 brain tumor like yesterday miss him so much life is hard no one in 5the rockers no one to cook n eat with.we had retirement plans all gone now so sorry lots of guilt i tried hard but not enough so sry jimmy darling i suffer each day
I lost my husband 3 months ago - not cancer but an aortic anurism. I was devastated - cannot realy remember anything that happened during the first few weeks after his death although I did all the estate admin etc my life is a blank. Looking back now I realise I must have been in total shock although friends and family tell me that I am handling it so well, am so strong. They do not see me in the morning when I have to get ready for work. I have to "scrape" myself together in order to get through the day. When I get home at night I just fall to pieces. It feels as if I do not have a life without my husband - I might as well also die. We had a future but I do not have one. Someone told me that I cannot die with him I have to learn to live without him. It feels impossible. We were married for 35 years I miss him so much. I know that maybe some day the sun might just shine again for me but it feels as if that day is still so extremely distant. Will I survive - I must survive - so many other people in the same situation has.
When Shaun died a month ago, something inside me died too. He was my anchor to this life, if you will. He showed me the good side of life, the hopeful side of life, the loving side of life. In effect, he was my reconnection with all that is good and loving about the human spirit ... and why we should all continue to live our lives as if they were a precious gift from God.
I eagerly jumped on Shaun's life train and followed him everywhere. During that time, I learned more than I had ever learned in my 54 years on this planet. I learned what was important in life, what wasn't important in life, and how to appreciate every joy, no matter how simple. If I had to do it all again, knowing that I would only have Shaun for such a short time, I would do it again in a heartbeat. His lessons were that important to me. His love was that important to me.
I lost my husband of 14 yrs July 22,2009...He was singing and dancing Thursday nite,we had plans for a long 3 day weekend..I left for work friday morning,,got a call from my mother in-law a 4:30 Friday afternoon..went straight home to find a house full of paramedics and my brother in-law..got to the hospital and the Dr. gave him a 1% chance to survive..he had a massive stroke and died 5 days later...He was 60 yrs old...I have been lost ever since...Just now starting to feel like it is ok to go on ...TIME does heal ...Stay strong.
my wife debbie passed away dec 21 with pancreatic cancer after a long 4 yr battle im so depressed i wish i was dead
I lost good friends this year and cannot imagine the larger pain of a person losing a spouse. Sorry for all those losses of loved ones to readers here.
My wife also passed away from cancer on 21 dec bob brua, the christmass tree that she put up is still there, I am having trouble coping. I wish I had gone with her, I feel so alone. there are some comments ere that live must go on, but what is the purpose if it has no value. I cannot imagine my livivg for the next 20 yrs without her,why?Next week I am going to the Cancer Support Group, that may help me to be with other people that are going through the same. God bless to all
you are right W F.T about the good books. When my wife was first diagnosed I spent many hours in doctors, radiologists waiting rooms,and taking a decent read helped, not only to pass the time, but to take my mind off the horror off what was happening to our lives, and the ultimate question we ask ourselves, how the hell did we end up here.I went to see the cancer council support group yesterday and amongst other things they have organised up to 6 sessions with a councillor, as well as attending a bereavement group who are all going through the same thing as I.collected my wifes ashes yesterday, put them in a jar and cuddled them, I even took them to bed with me last night and will do every night, it makes me feel better as I talk to her, I miss her so much.
Thank you for sharing this book. I found this when searching for books about losing a husband. My husband passed away October 9, 2010 - the morning after my 30th birthday, and 3 weeks after we got married. No one understands how I feel. They all think I should find someone new and that I have a long life ahead and can't understand why I say that no one will ever compare to the beautiful, most loving relationship I had with him, which took me a long time to find. I will definitely be reading this book soon as I have not been to any support groups, and haven't really been able to read a book about it until now. I've tried but I have been given some christian grief books and I am still not ready to hear that its "Gods Plan" and that my husband is in a better place while I suffer and push forward with life because I have bills to pay. Reading all of your stories has made me miss him so much and see that I am not alone in how I feel.
































Bob 3 years ago
Nice read Bill