Brandi Reyna

Ms. Reyna is a creative soul with a passion for helping others. Her faith is very important to her and is reflected in her writings. She writes about her faith and the role it plays in her grieving process and how she grieves. Ms. Reyna's purpose for writing is to give voice to and shed light on unique losses. Ms.Reyna's articles focus primarily on building and living a new life after the sudden loss of her fiancé; the subsequent grief associated with sudden loss, her identification as an "unwedded widow" (a widow who was not legally married to her beloved), loss of a parent (grandparent) and creating a new life while living with loss. Ms. Reyna shares her journey to encourage others in their own faith and in their own healing journey. She hopes that by sharing her story and leading by example through her own life that her journey will show others that we can experience significant and impactful losses and still experience a full and joy-filled life after loss. Ms. Reyna holds a Master of Arts degree in Professional Studies with a specialization in Counseling.

Articles:

Even After Death, He’s ‘Still With Us’

Still With Us As I walked across the stage to get my degree, I told myself “You are still with me.” As I begin the start of a new year, I tell myself, “You are watching over me.” As I accomplish goals, I tell myself, “You are cheering me on.” As I go from one milestone to the next, I tell myself, “You are proud of me.” As I go through seasons of storms, and when I struggle, I tell myself words of encouragement that you used to tell me. I have so many memories to share with you. I […]

Is Grieving a Denial of God?

Grieving the loss of your loved one does not mean that you have lost your faith or gone astray. Deep grief means you loved deeply, and that is not a denial of your faith or belief in God or a higher power. Grieving is our human way of trying to understand something out of our control. Mourning is an outward expression of grief. It is an external expression of internal pain. How we mourn is unique to who we are as a person. Excerpted from Life Amongst the Darkness: https://www.amazon.com/Light-Amongst-Darkness-Joyfilled-Journey-ebook/dp/B0C62GX5NR/ Website: https://linktr.ee/brandireyna

Prayer for an Empty Chair

Dear Empty Chair, We hold a place for you, Where you used to be, As we glance over and remember what used to be. The memories we cherish fondly and sometimes we remember with our tears, Tears because we miss you after all these years. We remember fondly the celebrations, the holidays, and the meals together as a family. While we still celebrate and have meals together, there are others in our lives now who haven’t met you, and we wish you could have been here to meet them. But God had other plans for you, And over time, we […]

The Ebb and Flow of Grief

Eleven Years Later If you would have told me 11 years ago, when I first lost my fiancé Greg a few weeks before our wedding day, that I would be living a full life – healthy and functioning – I would not have believed you at that time. Losing your soulmate suddenly in a car accident without the ability to say goodbye or I’ll see you in Heaven when he was still alive is something I will always be working through. Sure I got to say goodbye to his physical body but not to his soul. My faith is what […]

Self-Care During the Holidays

Self-Care During the Holidays The holidays are hard for people for any number of reasons. Losing someone who means a lot to you can be especially difficult during the holidays. That’s why it’s so important to practice self-care during the holidays. In current culture, self-care is often deemed as selfish; however, when taken into perspective, the more you take care of yourself, the more able you are to tend to your other responsibilities. “Self-care” is defined as: “the process of taking care of oneself with behaviors that promote health and active management of illness when it occurs.” There are several […]

Seven Years Later, the Grief Lingers

7 years seems like such a long time, yet it also seems like such a small amount of time as well. 7 years full of birthdays, holidays, weddings, birth of nieces and nephews, beginnings and endings of friendships, and cross country moves. March 9th is the 7th anniversary of my beloved Greg being with Jesus. I wish I could say that loss gets easier as time passes. Truthfully, the grief just gets different. Life goes on and I have just learned to live without Greg being physically present in my life. I have a full time job and a part […]

Grief Lesson: Life is Worth Fighting For

“Be Bold. Amaze Yourself. Take Chances. Live Your Life With Determination. This Your Time. You only LIVE ONCE.” ~ Author Unknown One thing life has taught me is that: Life is worth fighting for. My new life is very different from the life I had when Greg was still here. My new normal is very different from the first few years after losing Greg. While there are still aspects of my old life that are still in my new normal, a lot of growth and healing took place for me to be where I am at now in life. I […]

Poem: The Survivor

Most days I am able to function Go through with my routine Get up and go and live life Just like you did Just like we did Find the beauty in life The beauty of each day And be thankful for all God has created I still think of you every day I still miss you I still wish you were here I still experience new situations and wonder what you would think about them Would you like this movie Would you like this city Would you enjoy this as much as I do Then I have days where it […]

Seeing the Beauty of Life in the Wake of Death

Often as we are grieving, it is difficult to see the beauty that is left in our lives. For many who are grieving in the first year or two after loss, it is so difficult to see past the grief, the pain, the loss and to actually see life, the life that is still here waiting to be lived and the beauty that comes with each day. We are so caught up in the grief we are experiencing as a result of our loss that that is often what we see, what we live, what we feel; and the joy and […]

Three Years into Widowhood, Embracing a Birthday

“Hope your birthday is a good chance to see how far you have come, and look ahead to what the next year might be too!” ~Robin In September, I turned 28 years old. My birthday weekend was unlike the previous two. In 2010, my birthday was six months and a week after losing Greg. I really don’t remember that birthday much. I remember having dinner with my mom and a few people who were my friends at the time. I remember being overwhelmed trying to manage everything and be the “hostess” and try to “have it all together,” trying to make […]

Open to Hope is an online community offering inspirational stories of loss, hope and recovery. We believe hope is the bridge between loss and recovery.