What would you tell your younger self after childhood loss? In this special episode of The Life Shift Podcast, Matt Gilhooly shares a letter he wrote to his 8-year-old self, 36 years after losing his mom.

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At the end of every Life Shift Podcast conversation, I ask my guests: What would you tell an earlier version of yourself?

Today marks 36 years since my mom died, and I decided it was time to answer that question for myself. In this special solo bonus episode, I share a letter I wrote to the 8-year-old me who had just lost her.

This is a solo reflection from me, Matt Gilhooly, host of The Life Shift Podcast. My life shifted when I experienced childhood loss at 8 years old. Losing a parent young shaped how I see the world and how I move through it. Her absence has defined much of my story, but it has also led me toward healing from grief, learning to live with loss, and finding personal growth after grief.

The letter I share in this episode is both a reminder and a release. It is part of my own life after loss and part of what I hope makes this grief podcast a place where others feel less alone. Writing a letter to my younger self became an act of healing – one that I hope shows that even in the long arc of grief, connection and growth are possible.

Chapters

00:00 – Why this episode matters and remembering 36 years without my mom
02:10 – A letter to my 8-year-old self begins
09:45 – Carrying grief through silence, perfectionism, and control
16:30 – How stories bring healing and closing words of love

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grief, childhood loss, losing a parent young, life after loss, healing from grief, letter to younger self, grief podcast, personal growth after loss, Matt Gilhooly, The Life Shift Podcast