"There's a grief nobody warns caregivers about, and it starts before anyone is gone." 17 years of caregiving, I've felt the numbness and the whiplash myself, smiling for everyone and empty inside. Nobody tells you that you can grieve someone who's still sitting right across from you. If you've felt this, you are not cold, ungrateful, or broken. You are a caregiver carrying a loss that doesn't have a funeral. Save this for the day you need to hear it. In 17 years of caregiving, I've watched families sit in a room full of love and still feel completely alone. I've felt it myself. I'd smile through the shift, then sit in my car and feel nothing at all, and I'd wonder what was wrong with me. Nothing was wrong with me. Nothing is wrong with you. This kind of grief comes slowly, a little at a time. It shows up when they forget your name, or when the laugh you knew so well goes quiet. It shows up on the day you realize you haven't done one thing for yourself in months. You're allowed to miss someone who is still here. You're allowed to love them and be tired of this at the same time. Both are true. Both are human. Grief that nobody sees still deserves to be held. #HealingForCaregivers #FollowMeAcrossTheBridge #CaregiverGrief #AnticipatoryGrief #CaregiverSupport - @borntoserve07