I have never dealt with the loss of a friend or grief before, and sometimes I thought I was overreacting or underreacting to the situation. The nurses at home constantly reinforced the idea that everyone experiences pain differently and that my reactions to it were completely normal. My mother, on the other hand, was probably the most influential person during this crisis. He was constantly there for me, whether to hold me while I cried, to lend an ear while I screamed, to help watch Angela's children while I slept, or to make sure I ate and bathed every day. I think her maternal instincts took over, as she also had to deal with her son experiencing all these different things for the first time. I don't know how I would have dealt with the situation without having such a strong and supportive system within me