Author(s): Connie Easterbrook; Alison Fraser (Managing editor)

General

Grief and mourning are taboo subjects in our society, so how do you interact with the world when yours has been ripped apart by loss? Until recently, people's struggles with mental health and parenting were also hidden topics. Connie Easterbrook was raised in a Dutch household, where sterkte (meaning 'strength') was the way to resolve life's problems, but life didn't bless her with an easy path.

Connie was a sensitive and anxious child who, despite having four children, didn't find parenting easy. Her eldest daughter, Simone, died in a car accident when she was twenty-one, yet this was the second tragedy Connie had faced, because her youngest brother had died by suicide when he was twenty-seven.

My Daughter, Myself is Connie's journey towards understanding the complex mother-daughter relationship she had with Simone, and her complicated experience of grief. As Connie studied psychology and counselling, her parenting struggles, her losses and her battles with depression became clearer. My Daughter, Myself exposes the flaws of our keep-calm-and-carry-on culture while shining a light on personal insight and growth.