In Grief: Is Dad Dating Too Soon After Mother's Death?

[Reviewed and updated April 18, 2024]

I have a dead husband... I have a scarred heart. I am in a different place. Love after love will not feel the same. But that doesn't mean that it's not love.  ~ Janine Teague Eggers

A reader writes: My mother passed away last May and Dad started dating again three months after mom's death. He is now serious with a lady he met online. On the one hand, I am happy that he is happy again, as he was married to my mom for 45 years and it was a shock to everyone when she died five months after being diagnosed with ovarian cancer. However, I am feeling neglected and ignored by my dad.

Understanding and Managing Grief, May 20 - May 26, 2018

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

MemorialDay: The Story Of A Hero Son, A Dad's Grief And A Hit Song, http://j.mp/2INZ558 « Newsweek

The Need for Self-Compassion in Grief, http://j.mp/2ILeHWY « What's Your Grief ?

My Name is Grief, http://j.mp/2IMY60X  « Bryan C. Taylor

Caregiving and Hospice, October 8 - October 14, 2017

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

Palliative Care at the Vatican, http://j.mp/2yiQaCd « HuffPost

What the Dying Need from Us, http://j.mp/2ylwYnv « Hospicare

How I Encouraged My Dad to Start Hospice 'Early,' http://j.mp/2yjUd0S « Life Matters Media

Your feedback is welcome! Please feel free to leave a comment or a question, or share a tip, a related article or a resource of your own in the Comments section below. If you’d like Grief Healing Blog updates delivered right to your inbox, you’re cordially invited to subscribe to our weekly Grief Healing Newsletter. Sign up here.

Father's Day: Insights on Coping with Grief

Daddy, circa 1975

[Reviewed and updated June 17, 2022]

Dad: A son's first hero, a daughter's first love. ~ Author unknown

While it may be a special day for many, Father's Day is a holiday that challenges the endurance of fatherless children, as well as fathers and grandfathers whose children or grandchildren have died. My own father died too soon at the age of 69, and I miss him as much today as the day he left us. 

          If you're struggling with grief this Father's Day, know that you're not alone. Below you'll find a number of articles offering insights, comfort and support as well as various ways to cope.

Remarriage In Widowhood: How Soon Is Too Soon?

[Reviewed and updated March 13, 2026]

Many individuals approach marriage, even remarriage, with a “let’s get married and work out the details later” attitude. In fact, most remarrying couples have known each other less than 9 months. Couples remarry long before they have finished grieving their losses, worked through their issues or developed a healthy single lifestyle.  ~ Drs. Jeff and Judi Parziale

A reader writes: My dad remarried recently to a woman he met four months after my mom's passing. I am 36, so part of me feels like I shouldn't be so childish about this--however--they are an extremely insensitive twosome. My father will not speak of my mom; it's as if she never existed! He says constantly that he wouldn't change one thing in his life as it is today for anything. I don't know what my question is, or how you can help, but I am just so angry! I feel so locked in and closed off. How do you get through the anger? How do you start to deal with the rage of it all? Is it wrong to fess up to him and tell him how upsetting I find all of this?

Caregiving and Hospice, September 14 - September 20, 2014

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

Comprehensive, authoritative response to recent hospice media coverage, http://j.mp/1unncFL « National Coalition for Hospice and Palliative Care

Hey Dr. Emanuel: you might not want to die when you're 75! http://j.mp/1mmDD6g « GeriPal

How to Ensure Care for Your Pets, http://j.mp/1DnkCWA « Delaware Hospice

Caregiving and Hospice, July 6 - July 12, 2014

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

Amen! 'Let’s not lose sight of the gifts of hospice,' http://j.mp/TZqvGH « The Daily Journal

Brilliant! Not So ‘Crazy,’ After All, http://j.mp/1sI0PL3 « Modern Loss

The Death Doula, http://j.mp/1kaBhAV « Modern Loss

Caregiving and Hospice, April 28 - May 4, 2013

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

'Big C' consultant Dr. Vijay Trisal on Palliative Care, http://j.mp/13cTI15 « Los Angeles Times

Outstanding! The American Nurse: As Real As It Gets, http://j.mp/ZvmJ4E « Medscape (free registration is required to view)

Helping Seniors Learn New Technology, http://j.mp/Yt5LIL « New York Times

Medivizor: personalized medical information at your fingertips, http://j.mp/112z0E6 « Caregiving Cafe Blog

Deathbed Singers, Threshold Choirs, Grow To Comfort Sick And Dying, http://j.mp/ZDcE9j « Huff Post Religion