Dear Carol,
Here is my dilemma. My Paul passed away 2 yrs. ago from a sudden heart attack at age 58. We were married 39 years, no kids, just us.
He had gone up to bed & when I went to join him I found him on MY side of the bed. He always took my heating pad out from under the bed & plugged it in for me…Anyway…since then, I have not been able to sleep in our bed, or bedroom. I have slept downstairs for two years on a couch in the den.
I know that I cannot sleep down here forever….I was wondering…what if I got a new bedroom set, changed the room around, put up wall paper & new carpeting…
Would this help me to get back into that room? Has anyone else you know had this problem? I would be so interested in your advice.
Thanks so very much.
Karolee
Dear Karolee,
I normally don’t encourage widows to feel sorry for themselves, but look, really look at your loss.
For nearly 40 years (even Hallmark agrees it’s the Big 40 and that’s just years lived.)
you shared a house, a home, with Paul. You find him dead in your bed on YOUR side (your emphasis, not mine) reaching for a heating pad for YOU. Geez. Some women would torch the freakin’ room.
We widows all have emotionally charged areas in our homes. We either avoid them totally as you’ve done or as you suggest – redecorate. See how smart you are?
You’re right. A quick shot of Botox will not do. Your bedroom needs a facelift – new bedroom furniture, carpeting and a different configuration. A new mattress and a set of sheets is a band aide.
When you go to choose the furniture, etc. be mindful that you may hear a little voice that sounds eerily like Paul. He may be scolding you that you’re spending too much money. (I’ve heard that one – in death and in life)
Or, he may be telling you that as you replace you erase and you know, that is partically true. We need to clear away some of the shared “things” so we can breathe fresh air. New things represent our future.
Since Jimmy died I’ve done lots of redoing to many rooms – some in an effort to not continually face the old memories and some to make areas more useful for Skylar, my granddaughter. And, some because he didn’t want to and I did and now I can. Period. Nothing sentimental about that one.
Although, there is the bedroom, the master bedroom, our bedroom, my bedroom. I sleep there with my dog Tony but never with M. Why? I don’t know. Maybe one of my readers can tell me…or maybe you can, Karolee?