Laurie Fredsall
Certified Grief Educator
If you’re living with the grief of estrangement from your adult child, Strength After Estrangement welcomes you into compassionate, steady one-on-one support you can access from anywhere.
Who This Support Is For
If you find yourself loving your adult child deeply while no longer having contact with them, this experience can carry grief, confusion, shame, and a loneliness that is hard to name, especially when there is little social permission to talk about it.I offer focused one‑on‑one support to help you navigate estrangement from your adult child. My support is not about fixing, advising, or pushing reconciliation. It is about being met with steadiness, care, and respect as you make sense of what this loss has meant for you and how you are learning to live with it.
Why One-on-One Support Matters
Support groups can be incredibly meaningful, offering connection, shared understanding, and the reassurance that you are not alone in your experience. Hearing others’ stories and being part of a community brings comfort and a sense of belonging.At the same time, group settings are not always the right fit for everyone. You may find it difficult to speak openly in a shared space, feel overwhelmed by multiple emotional stories, or notice subtle comparisons or differing perspectives that make it harder to fully express your own experience. One-on-one support can offer a quieter, more private alternative. It is a space where you can speak freely, feel deeply heard, and receive compassionate, individualized support without judgment.
Who This Is Not For
This support may not be a fit if you are:• In need of in-person visits (I support you through video visits)
• Looking for strategies to repair or force reconciliation
• Wanting clear answers, timelines, or guarantees
• Needing crisis intervention or acute mental health treatmentIf you’re unsure, that’s okay. Uncertainty is often part of this grief.
The Support Experience
Reaching out about estrangement can feel hard. This page is here so you know what to expect - and can decide, in your own time, if this support fits.
WHAT THIS IS
We focus on your lived experience and the grief that often goes unseen. No pressure. No fixing. No agenda. I am available wherever you are through Zoom or other video meeting applications that work for you.WHAT OUR TIME IS LIKE
It’s conversation‑based.Think:
• A calm start
• Real listening
• Gentle reflection
• Space to talk about what’s here, without being pushed toward answers. You don’t need to prepare. We begin where you are.MY ROLE
I’m here with steadiness and respect, not to tell you who you are or what to do. I offer listening, reflection, and grief‑informed perspective when it’s useful. This isn’t therapy, but it’s intentional and held with care.
Estrangement can make life feel shaky. My intention is to offer something steadier. A human place to land.When you reach out, you’ll have a clear sense of what this support is, and what it isn’t, so you can decide what feels right for you.FEES & PRACTICAL DETAILS
One‑on‑one virtual sessions are offered at $75 per hour. Discounted packages are available for those seeking longer‑term support.I strive to offer clear, compassionate, non‑clinical grief support. If cost is a barrier, you’re welcome to inquire about options. Questions are always welcome before committing.Services are peer based, supportive and educational in nature. No diagnosis, treatment, or clinical therapy is provided.WHAT THIS SUPPORT ISN'T
For clarity:
• No legal advice
• No pressure toward reconciliation
• No diagnosing or evaluating
• No taking sides or trying to change you
• The focus stays on you and what supports you
My Background
Laurie's Professional Credentials
• Certified Grief Educator, by David Kessler | Grief.com
• Professional coursework: Understanding and Applying Ambiguous Loss: Its Meaning and Application, University of Minnesota
• B.A., Management and Organizational Leadership, George Fox University
• Professional in Human Resources Certificate, DePaul UniversityYou deserve someone who can sit with you in the uncertainty with steadiness and heart. As a certified grief educator with training in ambiguous loss, and a background in leadership and personal history work, I bring both professional insight and lived experience to my work.In our one‑on‑one virtual sessions, my role is to create a calm, grounded space where you can bring your questions, fears, and hopes without feeling rushed or judged. My leadership background has shaped the way I support people - with clarity, compassion, and the ability to hold both structure and softness at the same time. I’m here to walk with you and ensure you never feel like you have to figure this out alone.
My Approach
I work with mothers whose lives include an estrangement from an adult child.
Not as a finished chapter,
but as something ongoing -
shaping how days are lived,
how love is held,
how grief moves and changes over time.I don’t approach this work with a plan for resolution.
I don’t hold a position about what should happen next.What I offer is presence -
thoughtful, steady, and unhurried.
A place where anger, longing, devotion, and uncertainty are all allowed to exist without needing to be organized into a conclusion.My approach honors the complexity of estranged‑mother grief while creating space for validation, healing, and resilience.
Resources
Laurie's Substack Home
Because Love Never Dies
and
Laurie's Profile at Grief.com
Strength After Estrangement Facebook page
Let's Connect
You’re welcome to reach out when it feels right using the contact form below. I’d be glad to connect and talk about the possibility of working together one‑on‑one.
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