What if grief didn’t start at the funeral? What if it began the day you realized they were tired—really tired—and never fully came back?

What No One Told Me About Watching Them Die by Wade Armitaneu lays bare the unspoken reality of long-term illness, caregiving, and the haunting weight of anticipatory grief. This isn’t about “moving on.” It’s a raw, honest journey through what it means to stay—until the end, and long after.

From missed celebrations to the final bedside moment, Armitaneu shares a decade of heartbreak as his wife, Georgie, declined through illness and terminal cancer. But the story doesn’t end with death—it shifts to the complicated relief, unexpected laughter, guilt of happiness, and the fragile courage to love again.

This book is for:

Caregivers who give everything and feel unseen

Partners whose grief began long before goodbye

Survivors judged for coping “too well”

Anyone rebuilding while holding the past close

Inside, you’ll find:

Raw truths about anticipatory grief, hospice, and exhaustion

The caregiver’s hidden grief—and their right to joy

Reflections on love, memory, anger, and renewal

A deeply human story of loving again without forgetting

Practical tools: Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions, journaling prompts, and resources

Through 21 reflective chapters and a journaling companion, Armitaneu offers more than a memoir—he offers a hand. A reminder that being “okay” doesn’t mean you’ve stopped loving, and that you can carry them forward without leaving them behind.

It’s not polished. It’s not wrapped in platitudes. It’s a mirror for anyone who has loved deeply, lost painfully, and dared to live again.

For anyone who’s sat in the dark wondering if there’s life beyond this—this book is for you.