Why Communities Benefit from Supporting and Celebrating Non-Traditional Families
Learn how supporting and celebrating non-traditional families benefits communities. Discover the importance of inclusivity and find ways to support them.
Learn how supporting and celebrating non-traditional families benefits communities. Discover the importance of inclusivity and find ways to support them.
The last year of the pandemic has created uncertain and isolating times, which have impacted our wellbeing in many ways. It’s made us more aware of just how important our health really is, and what can happen when it’s not intact.
In December of 2019, Jane, a 40-year-old married woman with a son in elementary school, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Soon thereafter, her husband Michael became her primary caregiver— someone who provides ongoing assistance to and advocates for a care recipient, helping them through activities of daily life such as bathing, dressing, using the restroom and coordinating their care. Life was difficult but manageable. Then COVID-19 hit.
When you lose your critical lifeline at age five you cannot escape some brand of heartache. It impacts everything you do, your relationships, your health, and your ability to function in the world. As would be true for most children, my lifeline was my mom and any type of normal life trajectory halted when I lost her on a cold February day in Madison, South Dakota. My heartache has lasted for years.
All relationships are romantic...even the ones that are platonic in nature. We often forget that our friendships need love too, and have to be nurtured and cared for in the same way our spouses or life partners do.

Forget the typical post-breakup protocol, the healing process from an unhealthy relationship is a long and complicated road. Many victims of relationship abuse suffer in silence. Women can endure consistent, steady patterns of abuse within the walls of their homes, but bravely present a strong, put-together exterior for the world to see.
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