Why I Find Comfort in Old Shows and Music While Grieving My Mom...

Grief does strange things. It pulls you back into places you didn’t expect, seasons you thought you had outgrown, and memories you didn’t know you needed. Lately, I’ve found myself drawn to the shows I used to watch as a teenager and the music I loved when I was younger—back when my mom was still here.

At first, I questioned it. Why am I doing this? Shouldn’t I be moving forward? But here’s the truth: this is one of grief’s quiet languages.

When we lose our mothers, our hearts often go searching for safety. For familiarity. For proof that life once felt whole. Old TV shows and music become a kind of time machine carrying us back to moments when the world felt lighter, easier, and she was still just a phone call away.

This isn’t regression. It’s self-soothing. It’s therapy without a label. It’s my heart saying: “I need to remember who I was when life was softer.”

If you’ve been reaching for old shows, old playlists, or rituals from the past please know, you’re not strange. You’re not broken. You’re finding comfort in continuity. You’re building a bridge between then and now.

And sometimes, healing looks like curling up with a show you’ve seen a hundred times, or pressing play on a song that takes you back to the girl you once were the girl whose mom was still here. 🌹

Kinyatta