When Friendship Fails: Who Shows Up for Us in Our Grief?
For so many of us, friends are as important as spouses, romantic partners, or family members. And a line is crossed when a friend is incapable or unwilling to provide support in times of crisis or loss. And if they disappear or ghost us, the grief is more pronounced because there’s no resolution or closure. Society often dismisses the heartache and grief we feel when friends ghost us or disappear and there’s no resolution. Authors Gina Moffa and Katherine Sleadd, both accomplished grief and trauma therapists, share insights into navigating friendship loss. This is a space to ask questions freely, without guilt or shame.
Gina Moffa is a licensed clinical social worker in private practice in New York City. In the field for over 20 years, Gina has helped thousands of people seeking treatment for grief and trauma, but focusing on emerging adults. As a grief therapist, she wanted to find a way to educate young people about the grief experience to help the experience to be less debilitating for the long term. With that intention, she wrote the book, Moving On Doesn't Mean Letting go: A Modern Guide to Navigating Loss (Hachette). It has been quoted in international publications, such as Forbes, TIME, USA Today, as well as features on NPR. Gina is currently working on a new book that focuses on friendship loss, as this is a topic too many struggle with in silence.
Katherine Sleadd is the author of How to Be a Bad Friend: The Hidden Life of Failed Relationships, a book about the complexity of friendships and the heartache of friend breakups. Katherine holds a Master’s degree in counseling psychology with a concentration in trauma and abuse and is a licensed therapist in Colorado. She works with people healing from relational harm and aids them in rebuilding their connection to themselves and authentic community. Kat lives with her partner and children near Boulder.
About Reimagine
Reimagine is a nonprofit organization catalyzing a uniquely powerful community–people of different backgrounds, ages, races, and faiths (and no faith) coming together in the hopes of healing ourselves and the world. We specifically support each other in facing adversity, loss, and mortality and–at our own pace– actively channeling life's biggest challenges into meaningful action and growth.
