Family Flowers Only by Grief Ireland Kathie Stritch

On todays episode of Family Flowers Only I spoke to Sophia Murphy

Sophia is a recently qualified PT and a mom from Galway



TW. Please be advised that this episode contains conversations of childhood sexual abuse and is often times upsetting. See below for helpline advice



Sophias story of loss begins in childhood when heartbreakingly, as a baby her father began abusing her.

She endured many years of absolute hell and torture until the abuse came to an end at the age of 16 when another victim came forward and he was eventually jailed for his horrific crimes.



We spoke about so much from the abuse, to the courts, her battle with addiction, loosing her beloved sister Steph to addiction and fighting her way forward to build a life little Sophia would be proud of and deserves.



If you have been affected by this episode please call the

RAPE CRISIS CENTRE ON 1800 77 8888



You can find Sophia on TikTok @sophiamurphy980

And on Instagram @sophfit7



You can follow Kathie

On Instagram @griefireland

On TikTok @familyflowersonly



For more information on Grief Retreats visit www.griefireland.com

On todays episode of Family Flowers Only I spoke to Mary McHugh.

Mary is a psychotherapist with over 25 years experience and the owner of www.counsellingonline.ie



We sat down and spoke about her own experiences of loss, one being the breakdown of her marriage when she was pregnant with her third child. 



We also answered all of your questions that you sent in, from how to cope with guilt, feeling numb, how to know if therapy is right for you and the feeling of not wanting to be here anymore.

I adore Mary she has such a calm warming presence and I hope you enjoy our conversation



You can follow Kathie

On Instagram @griefireland

On TikTok @familyflowersonly



For more information on Grief Retreats visit www.griefireland.com

On todays episode of family flowers only I speak to Kathleen Chada



Kathleen is from Carlow, she is a nurse and mom to Eoghan and RuairÍ. She is a campaigner for real justice and author of the book “Everything”



Please be aware the following details some listeners might find upsetting and in this episode we discuss murder, suicide ideation, death and loss.



On July 29, 2013, Kathleen’s former husband Sanjeev Chada murdered their sons, Eoghan (10) and Ruairí (5), and later attempted to take his own life.

He killed the boys in Ballintubber, Co Mayo, and their bodies were found in the boot of his car which he had crashed near Westport in an attempt to take his own life.

He pleaded guilty in court and was handed two life sentences to run concurrently.



Kathleen has often spoke publicly about what happenedand the justice side of things but I wanted to give her the opportunity to  focus on the boys, who they were and what they were like,  and about her own personal experiences through Grief and loss.



She is such an impressive woman who gave so much wisdom and many insights into how she copes since her horrific loss.



I hope this episode is helpful to you and that you enjoy our chat .



If you enjoyed this episode please don’t forget to hit the follow button here and rate on the channel, tell a friend and I will talk to you next time.



You can follow Kathie

On Instagram @griefireland

On TikTok @familyflowersonly



For more information on Grief Retreats visit www.griefireland.com

On todays episode of family flowers only I speak to Claire Walsh 



Claire is from Kildare, she is a freediver, year-round sea swimmer and teacher of breathwork courses. She is also author of her book "UNDERWATER"

She lives in Dublin with her husband Boudy. 



Having both discussed early on in their relationship their desire to expand their family by having children they had plenty of dreams and hopes for the future. 

Unfortunately getting pregnant isn’t simple or a given and like thousands of others Claire sadly has navigated the living grief and loss that comes with subfertility commonly known as infertility and the challenges of IVF.



We spoke about searching for a space to fit in to grieve the losses that she feels, about the IVF process and the uncertainty for the future



I hope this episode is helpful to you and that you enjoy our chat 



You can follow Claire

On Instagram @clairewalshlife

Or website www.clairewalshlife.com



You can follow Kathie

On Instagram @griefireland

On TikTok @familyflowersonly



For more information on Grief Retreats visit www.griefireland.com

On this weeks episode of Family Flowers Only I speak to Annette Burke

Annette is from Galway and is a trainee psychotherapist. 



Her early life faced challenge and loss of sorts as her brother battled with poor mental health which put a lot of strain on the family.



In 2020 Annettes mother Teresa passed away after a short illness which caused a great deal of complexity surrounding her grief as their relationship had been strained in the lead up to her mothers diagnosis. 



Sadly her grief was further compounded by another blow to her family earlier this year. 



Annette spoke to me about the heaviness of guilt, the misconception that we always have ample amounts of time, and how her mother helps her now.



I hope you enjoy this episode



N.B (Please be aware we discuss topics of a sensitive nature in this podcast such as Death, Mental Health, Suicide etc)

Visit www.pieta.ie for MH support or call 116 123



You can follow Kathie

On Instagram @griefireland

On TikTok @familyflowersonly



For more information on Grief Retreats visit www.griefireland.com

On todays episode of family flowers only I speak to Aidan Brennan 



Aidan is from Roscommon, husband to Tracey and Dad to Evan.



Aidans wife Tracey was diagnosed with Cervical Cancer in 2017 following a smear test. She went on to advocate for access to the drug Pembroe and campaigned alongside Vicky Phelan and Aine Morgan, the drug was made available for the women of Ireland something Tracey and the other ladies valiantly fought for. Unfortunately the drug did not work for Tracey and she sadly lost her life to Cancer in 2019.



Aidan shared with me so openly about his grief, the reality of being left to raise a young child alone and how overwhelming the loneliness can be at times



I hope this episode helps you in some way.



(N.B Please note that we discuss sensitive topics such as Death, Cancer and Grief)



You can follow Kathie on Instagram @griefireland

And on TikTok @Familyflowersonly

For more information on Grief Retreats visit www.griefireland.com