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The Cara McDonald Foundation is an online weekly support group where you can come together with others who have lost a child, writes Sue McDonald.

A place of respect, honour and connection, a space to release and allow to surface what needs to surface. No agenda, no religion, no advice, no judgement, no opinion or solutions, a heart-centred space to express and participate and gain acceptance, love, support and understanding.

When my daughter died suddenly from meningitis aged 13, my world fell apart. The shock, pain and devastation I experienced was overwhelming and hard to deal with.

The loneliness I felt as I worked my way through the pain, loss and grief and the lack of support available made the journey a hard one.

Cara McDonald was aged just 13 when she died of meningitis.

I felt so alone with it and the pressure to pull myself together and get over it was a message I heard often both outright but also subtlety.

This is why I started the Cara McDonald Foundation, so other parents don't have to travel the same lonely path.

Grief is a process which is different for everybody, but is something we do not talk about as a society.

I would like to help others who have lost a child to have a different experience, one where love, support and understanding are available to help you navigate your way through your loss, pain and grief.

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The foundation exists as a heart-centred space for families who have experienced the cruellest loss, the loss of a child. We are here for you if you have lost a child at any age/gestation and from any cause.

I know the loss of a child is a loss like no other, a loss so great, so painful you don’t know how you are going to survive it. You never get over it, it breaks your heart and it is a lonely place to be.

Back in the treadmill of life, no-one cares and everyone goes on, yet your world has stopped.

We offer a safe, loving, compassionate and understanding and sacred space cradling you, your lost loved one and your broken, grieving heart. At whatever stage of grieving you are, we are here for you. We are here to walk with you every step of the way.

For more information, call 07903 409138, or email [email protected]

Foundation offers support for families who have experienced the loss of a child