BLOG: The One Where we say goodbye to Matthew Perry (aka Parasocial Grief)

The Silent Why: finding hope in grief and loss

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Could we BE any more sad about this loss?
Welcome to another My Why blog from me, Claire Sandys, co-host of The Silent Why podcast.
My Why episodes are audio shorts of my latest blog post. If you'd prefer to read it, you can find it here: https://www.thesilentwhy.com/post/theonewherewesaygoodbyetomatthewperry
Like many people, the sitcom Friends was a huge part of my growing up in my late teens and early twenties. So when the world heard on 28 October 2023 that Matthew Perry (aka Chandler Bing) had been found dead, there was a collective sadness that spread across the news and social media, and I found myself pondering on this situation and felt led to explore those thoughts in a blog post.
I also found out that grieving someone you've never met has a name - Parasocial Grief. It can be a confusing thing to experience, so I thought I'd unpack it a little for you, and what it felt like to me with the loss of a character that was one of my all time favourites. My hope is that it might also help you grieve the loss of someone you never met.
To watch the song I mention that was played at Matthew's funeral, Don't Give Up, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjEq-r2agqc
You can find the episode with Mary-Frances O'Connor, Let's Chat... Grieving Brains here:
https://www.thesilentwhy.com/podcast/episode/7bd90faf/lets-chat-grieving-brains

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