Second Firsts: Live, Laugh, and Love Again

"You can do the impossible, because you have been through the unimaginable." p. 145

If you have ever experienced a loss in your life, either through death or divorce or something else, this book is for you. Think of it as a manual to help you navigate through the grief and suffering of loss, with the final destination being Life. As anyone that has lost someone knows, grief is debilitating and lonely and hard to break free from. This book is a helpful coach. Having experienced loss herself, the author's understanding of it and grief is real. That is not only comforting to the reader, but it also makes her advice easier to accept and her suggestions easier to follow.

I found the Grief Cleanse to be the most challenging exercise, but also the most rewarding. I experienced a great amount of frustration and anxiety while doing the written cleanse, but once completed I experienced an overwhelming amount of clarity and peace. It also helped me to want to move forward with my life.

I would really like to take the author, Christina Rasmussen, out for lunch and thank her profusely for writing the book that saved me from spending a lifetime in the Loop of Loss. I received this book at the most perfect time. I had just been lamenting to a friend about how I couldn't seem to shake the sadness that had been following me for years after suffering a devastating loss when this book arrived in the mail. I intended to devour it, cover to cover, in one sitting, but the book's structure did not lend itself to that. Instead, I read it slowly, page by page, stopping frequently to take notes in the margin, underline important parts I want to remember, and journaling when instructed by Christina. I know that this book has changed my life, thrusting me forward out of the Waiting Room and into the miraculous present. I am re-entering Life and it feels so good. This book will have a special place on my bookshelf, and I intend to buy one for every person in my life that could benefit from its words. My life has been transformed.

FTC Disclosure: I received this book for free from Hay House Publishing for this review. The opinion in this review is unbiased and reflects my honest judgment of the product.