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Walking This Road Together

Melissa Bottorff-Arey has been living this path since the suicide loss of her 21-year-old son, Alex, in 2016.

Over the past six years, through The Leftover Pieces® Podcast, writing, retreats, and private coaching, she has held space for hundreds of honest conversations about suicide loss and the lifelong journey that follows.

Her work is rooted in lived experience and shaped by walking alongside other grieving mothers as they learn how to carry their love and grief while continuing to live forward.

Experience & Credentials

Host of The Leftover Pieces® Podcast (250+ conversations on suicide loss)
• Author & Legacy Project Curator honoring lives lost
• Master Certified Grief Coach & Trauma-Informed Energy Healer
• Retreat Leader, Speaker & Collaborator in suicide loss support

 

The Podcast

An Incredible FREE
Resource for ALL
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1:1 Coaching with Melissa

Reframe Guilt. Rebuild You. 

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When Grief Changes Us, Support Can Change Too

The loss of a child doesn’t just break the heart—it changes how we see ourselves, our relationships, and the life ahead.

Many mothers find that after the early shock of grief begins to settle, deeper questions emerge:

Who am I now?
How do I live forward while still carrying this love and loss?
What does the rest of my life look like?

Grief coaching creates a space to explore those questions with someone who understands this path firsthand.

Unlike traditional support spaces, this work is deeply personal and reflective. Through conversation, guided reflection, and gentle exploration, coaching helps mothers reconnect with themselves, release guilt that no longer serves them, and begin shaping a life that can hold both love and loss.

It is not about fixing grief.

It is about learning how to live alongside it.

 

A Weekly Check-In for Fellow Grievers

Most weeks, I send a short note — reflections from the rabbit hole, reminders you're not alone, and a few honest thoughts about learning to live forward after loss.

Nothing heavy. Nothing overwhelming. Just a little companionship in your inbox.-- reaching 1000+ fellow grievers. weekly