The BackstoryMy Name is T.O. (Ignore the odd name - my dead parents gave it to me)
I know what you are going through. My mom, the biggest hero I've ever had, has been gone for 17 years, and I'm still not 'over it'.
I still miss her every day. But I'll admit I'm also still a little mad at her that she left (not that I think she chose cancer, of course - I never said I was always rational).
My dad, far less of a hero, has been gone for 6 years, and that has been a tough ride for entirely different reasons.
Above all else, I've had to deal with the guilt of feeling relieved about some things I'm probably "not supposed to".
In both cases I spent far too much time wondering if I was grieving normally, or if I was broken.
I knew what I was feeling, and I didn't like it. I felt like I was drowning, and living my life was really hard. Like I was carrying around my grief like a giant weight tied to my waist.
I knew I wanted - needed - to start feeling better. To change my relationship to grief, and to the ghosts of my parents. But I couldn't find what I needed to do so.
I wanted a structure to work through my grief. But I didn't want judgement, and I didn't want to participate in performative crap that didn't feel like me.
I wanted to quit pretending that grief followed rules, and just stand up and face it head on.
Since I couldn't find what I needed, eventually I just created it.
The Aftermath: A Daily Practice For The Parentless
The Aftermath may be exactly what you need, too. It is a guided exploration of your grief. 90 days of daily prompts that meet you where you actually are - not where grief literature says you should be.
Five minutes a day. One prompt in your inbox every morning. No toxic positivity, no timeline pressure, no promises that this will heal you.
Just 90 different ways to look at what you're carrying, finish conversations that got interrupted, and build a practice of moving forward that doesn't require pretending you're fine.
No one tells you that grief doesn't follow a process - it just follows you.
The Aftermath exists because I wish someone had given me a structured practice that acknowledged this reality instead of promising it would get better with time.
It didn't get better. It got weirder.
This is about making peace with the weird.
What The Aftermath Actually Is:
90 daily email prompts (one every morning for three months)
5-minute exercises that take grief seriously without taking it solemnly
A structured practice for people who have lost structure
Permission to feel what you're actually feeling instead of what you're 'supposed to' feel
Proof that you aren't the only person feeling how you are feeling
A way to re-start the conversations with your dead parents that didn't get finished
A method for moving forward that doesn't require moving on
An exploration on your time, at your pace, that can be whatever you need it to be
What The Aftermath Is NOT:
Therapy (though it costs less than a quarter of a single average session these days)
A cure (grief doesn't work that way)
A timeline (You don't 'graduate' from missing your parents)
Bullshit about silver linings and everything happening for a reason
FAQs
What if I miss a day?
The prompts arrive daily but they don't expire. Go at your own pace. The goal is progress, not perfection.
What if I'm not a "journaling person"?
Don't worry, neither am I. These aren't traditional journal prompts. Many are thinking exercises, permission statements, or conversation starters. Do them in your head, on your phone, on paper—whatever works.
Are these just random prompts you'll throw at me?
Nope. I put a whole lot of thought, work, and testing into how they are structured. They are grouped into themes of one to three weeks in length, and within each theme there is moderation of intensity and type of prompts. It's a carefully orchestrated journey - not just some crap that sounded good that I threw together to make a few bucks.
Why a daily email format?
We tested several formats, and this was by far the best one. With an e-book, it's too easy to start strong but then lose momentum. A PDF is too easy to ignore - how many are on your hard drive that you've never even read? If you have to log into something every day, most people won't. No one needs to get yet another app or piece of software. This was the best way to put the prompt at the front of mind every day, and to integrate it into their life. It's the easiest way to build a habit because it arrives at the same time every day without any action from you. And the simplicity is part of the beauty, too.
Will this make me cry?
Maybe. Some prompts might hit hard. Others might make you laugh. Others might feel irrelevant. That's the nature of grief—it's unpredictable.
Is this religious/spiritual?
No. The prompts are secular and don't assume any particular belief system about death or afterlife.
What if my parents died recently vs. years ago?
The prompts work for both. Grief doesn't follow a timeline. Some will resonate more depending on where you are, just as some will resonate more or less depending on who you are. There is more than enough here for anyone to sink their teeth into.
Can I buy this for someone else?
I'm not going to stop you, but it's not the best idea. For this approach to work you need to be open to it. Forcing it on someone who isn't ready or willing can cause them to take a step back when you are trying to help them move forward. You are much better off showing them this page and letting them decide for themselves.
What's your refund policy?
If after the first week you decide this isn't for you, email me and I'll refund you. No questions asked. Life is hard enough without fighting over $47.
Is there a time when The Aftermath isn't enough for what I need?
There may be. The Aftermath is a daily practice for processing grief. It is not therapy, crisis intervention, or mental health treatment.
If you're experiencing any of the following, please reach out to a mental health professional instead of (or in addition to) using these prompts:
-Thoughts of harming yourself or others
-Inability to function in daily life (can't work, can't care for yourself, can't get out of bed for extended periods)
-Substance use that's become a primary coping mechanism
-Grief that's preventing you from meeting basic needs (eating, sleeping, hygiene)
-Symptoms of severe depression or anxiety that interfere with your ability to live
-Isolation so complete that you've cut off all human contact
-Physical health declining due to grief
-Grief is brutal. Sometimes it requires more support than a daily email can provide.
If you're in crisis right now:
US: National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988 or 1-800-273-8255
Canada: Talk Suicide Canada: 1-833-456-4566
UK: Samaritans: 116 123
Australia: Lifeline: 13 11 14
Finding a therapist:
Psychology Today therapist directory: psychologytoday.com/us/therapists
Open Path Collective (affordable therapy): openpathcollective.org
Your doctor can provide referrals
This practice assumes you're functional but struggling—not in crisis.
If you're in crisis, please get help from someone who can actually help. These prompts will still be here when you're ready.
Still Skeptical? Good.
Here’s why now is the right time for The Aftermath:
You been meaning to 'deal with' your grief.
You've been telling yourself you'll start journaling, find a grief group, find a shrink, process your feelings.
But you haven't done it because:
You don't know where to start Every grief resource assumes you know what you need. You don't. You just know that what you're doing isn't quite working.
What you're already doing isn't enough You're managing. You're functioning. You're showing up. But you're also avoiding, deflecting, and operating on autopilot. The coping mechanisms that got you through the first months aren't actually processing anything—they're just keeping you moving.
You don't have people who understand Your friends mean well. Your living family is dealing with their own grief. Grief groups feel performative. Therapy is expensive and you're tired of explaining context. The people who would understand what you're going through are the ones you lost.
You're exhausted from carrying this alone Grief is isolating. It's made worse by the fact that everyone else has moved on while you're still figuring out how to exist in this new reality. You need structure, but you need it from someone who gets it.
Starting feels overwhelming The gap between "I should process my grief" and "I'm actively processing my grief" is enormous. You need a bridge. Something that makes starting simple instead of monumental.
The perfect moment doesn't exist You're waiting to feel ready. You're waiting for the right time, the right energy, the right headspace. But grief doesn't give you perfect conditions. It just gives you today.
The Aftermath solves the structure problem. It shows you how to get started, and it gives you the push you need to get moving.
Show up for 5 minutes. Do the prompt. Move forward incrementally.
Some movement is better than standing still waiting for the perfect moment to begin.
Let's Talk MoneyThe Investment
Just $47 for 90 days of daily prompts. That's:
Less than the a quarter of the cost of an average single therapy session
Just 52 cents per day - there's probably more in your couch cushions right now
The cost of a pretty standard lunch for two that you'll eat and immediately forget
A fraction of what you'd pay for a grief workshop or course.
What Happens After You Buy?
You'll receive immediate access and a welcome email explaining how this works
Starting tomorrow morning at 7:15 am ET, you'll get one prompt in your inbox daily
You'll spend 5 minutes (or more, if you want) engaging with it
This continues for 90 consecutive days After 90 days, you'll have built a practice of showing up for your grief instead of avoiding it
Just 90 days of prompts that treat you like an adult capable of handling complexity.
Get Started Now!
Buy The Aftermath Now!