
You Can't Do It Alone
A Widow's Journey Through Loss, Grief and Life After
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Narrated by:
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Maria Quiban Whitesell
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Lauren Schneider LCSW
About this listen
In this supportive guide, a widow and a mental-health expert provide guidance and thoughtful advice for anyone dealing with traumatic loss.
When FOX11's Weather Anchor Maria Quiban Whitesell's husband, Sean, was diagnosed with glioblastoma (GBM), a deadly form of brain cancer, she was completely unprepared. How would she possibly explain what was happening to their young son, Gus? How should she respond when people ask inappropriate questions? What about just dealing with the details of the day-to-day?
In You Can't Do It Alone, Whitesell tells her story and teams up with Licensed Therapist Lauren Schneider to provide listeners with a road map for walking through illness, death, and grief. Whitesell and Schneider explore:
- Discussing a serious diagnosis in an honest, clear manner
- Navigating control over life when you feel no control
- Finding your support group
- Dealing with memories, family, and friends
- Helping balance work, caregiving, parenting, and much, much more
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Critic reviews
"Navigating the advanced serious illness and death of her husband Sean presented Maria not just with grieving his loss, but also helping their five-year-old son Gus understand and adjust. Their story and lessons learned may help other young families facing the unexpected early death of a spouse and parent. With helpful comments and suggestions from grief therapist Lauren Schneider at the close of each chapter, I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants to better understand their own journey, or support friends and family coping with young children whose parent is seriously ill." (Donna Schuurman, senior director of advocacy and training, executive director emeritus, the Dougy Center for Grieving Children & Families)
"This book is healing and helpful, heartbreaking and uplifting, but ultimately it's validation of our resilience. Maria's lessons will help anyone facing disease." (Leeza Gibbons, Emmy Award-winning television personality and New York Times best-selling author)
"Maria has written an honest and beautiful accounting of her heartbreaking journey and how to find hope, comfort and healing in the face of the unthinkable tragedy. Thank you, Maria, for sharing this story that will undoubtedly help countless others to weather such storms and ultimately lead back to love...and, yes, to sunnier days. You are an inspiration!" (Danica McKellar, actress (The Wonder Years, Hallmark movies) and New York Times best-selling author of Kiss My Math)
What listeners say about You Can't Do It Alone
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
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Performance
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- Michael D
- 04-28-25
Listened to in one sitting. Tragically Compelling
I listened to Maria's story a few months after my niece suddenly died in March, 2020. Every time Maria mentioned her husband, all I could see was my niece's face. Maria's willingness to share her grief and vulnerability helped me put some words to what was happenning inside of me. There are still days, five years later, that I feel like I've been hit by a wrecking ball. Even though I'm a mental health professional and know that grief is not an event or a phase, but a lifelong process, I am reminded that not every moment during that process can be described in words. What stays with me after listening to Maria, five years later, is her emotions that poured out through her words. Excellent book.
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Overall
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Performance
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- Amazon Customer
- 05-17-21
Thank you Sean
You, maria and your family are a gift to this world. Thank you both for sharing this with us. I am moved, inspired, and forever changed. 🙏🏼
Innis
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