Motherless Daughters Community Calls
for Recent Mother Loss
Support and Healing for Daughters during the First Two Years
Thursdays at 5PT/8ET
Welcome to our Motherless Daughters Community Calls for Recent Loss, a nurturing and understanding space for women and non-binary individuals navigating the tender and complex journey of the first two years after losing their mothers.
In the early phase of grief, the world can feel overwhelmingly different and challenging. You may find yourself grappling with intense emotions, needing to adjust to unexpected changes, and feeling a profound sense of longing for the advice, comfort, and presence of your mother.
It's a time when the absence of her voice can echo loudly, bringing both sorrow and a search for understanding. If few (or none) of your friends have lost their moms, it’s hard to find other women who can understand this unique type of loss.
At Motherless Daughters, we understand the specific nature of your loss. We bring women together 3 times per month to share their stories and find validation and support.
Our calls are led by trained facilitators whose mission is to meet your needs during these first two years. Topics focus on different aspects of recent loss and adjusting to a world without your mom.
Join us and become part of a community of women dedicated to walking this path together.
April 2026 Topics
4/9: Welcoming New Members + Is It Okay to Feel Happy Again?
When joy shows up alongside grief.
Sometimes you laugh. Something feels light. A moment feels good.
And then… guilt.
After losing your mom, happiness can feel confusing. You might wonder if feeling okay means you’re moving on, forgetting her, or leaving her behind.
This session offers space to talk about the tension between grief and joy. We’ll name the guilt that can surface when things feel lighter and explore how love and loss can coexist with moments of happiness.
There’s no right pace and no expectation to be “better.” Just room to be honest about the complexity of carrying both.
4/16: WTF Dad?!
Losing your mom can shift your entire family dynamic.
Maybe your dad shut down.
Maybe he moved on quickly.
Maybe he won’t talk about her.
Maybe you feel like you became the emotional adult overnight.
Or maybe you just keep thinking… WTF?
This session is a space to talk about the complicated changes that can happen with surviving parents and within your nuclear family after loss. We’ll explore the grief of losing not only your mom, but the version of your family that existed when she was here.
Together, we’ll gently unpack:
Anger, resentment, or disappointment
Role shifts and unspoken expectations
Protecting your mom’s memory
Navigating dating, remarriage, or silence
Setting boundaries while still grieving
4/23:When the Support You Expected Isn’t There
Navigating disappointment after loss.
After your mom dies, you may assume certain people will show up in specific ways. And sometimes… they don’t.
Friends stop checking in. Family members avoid the topic. People say things that miss the mark. Or the support fades long before your grief does.
This session offers space to talk about the loneliness and disappointment that can surface when the support you counted on isn’t there. We’ll explore how to protect your energy, adjust expectations, and care for yourself without feeling responsible for making others comfortable.
You’re allowed to feel hurt. You’re allowed to recalibrate. And you’re allowed to seek support that actually feels supportive.
4/30: Off Week Reflection
Finding Steadiness
We’re not meeting this week, but you’re still held here.
This month, we talked about joy and guilt, family shifts, and the disappointment of unmet support. That’s a lot to carry.
As you move through this quieter week, you might gently reflect on:
“What helps me feel steady when the people around me feel unpredictable?”
Notice what feels grounding, a boundary, a person, a practice, or something within you.
Take what resonates. Leave the rest. You’re not alone in this. 💛
Click below to explore past topics.
Hope Edelman, longtime grief specialist and bestselling author of Motherless Daughters and Motherless Mothers, typically attends the introductory call every month to welcome new members. The next two calls each month will be guided by L.A.-based trauma therapist Angela Schellenberg and co-facilitated by Devin Brinkley, who shares your experience of recent mother loss.
Together, Hope, Angela, and Devin offer a compassionate environment to help you explore and understand the complex feelings that can arise.
Here, you're not alone; our community helps you navigate this delicate phase of early grief with empathy and connection. Join us in finding strength and shared healing during this early part of your journey.
Motherless Daughters Community Calls include:
We offer three 90-minute Zoom calls per month, led by therapist Angela Schellenberg and Devin Brinkley, both of whom lost their mothers as adults.
We meet on Thursdays, starting at 5pm PT/8pm.
We begin with a 60-minute discussion focused on a weekly theme, with an active chat box for sharing and making connections throughout the call.
Then there’s a 30-minute open discussion to continue sharing your stories (or to just read the comments and listen). This is the part women often love the most — the opportunity to share directly with others in the community. Devin facilitates the open conversation, and the subjects discussed here each week are entirely up to YOU.
You also receive access to Private Facebook and WhatsApp discussion groups, where you can share your story, ask questions, give and receive support, and meet women with similar histories. Access to this group is open-ended — you can still participate even after your subscription ends.
Three times per year you’ll be invited to FREE Bonus Calls led by Hope, to help you gently revisit and re-author the story of loss you are carrying. We honor how our stories change and grow over time, as you change and grow yourself, and these weeks will help you explore those changes and find new types of meaning from your loss.
Meet Your Co-Facilitators
Click their names to read their bio.
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Founder and CEO
As the "mother" of motherless daughters, Hope Edelman is the author of eight nonfiction books, including the bestsellers Motherless Daughters and Motherless Mothers, and her most recent book, The AfterGrief. Her books have been published in 17 countries and 11 languages and have sold more than 1 million copies. Motherless Daughters, often considered required reading for any woman who has lost a mother, is now in its third edition and has been in print for nearly 30 years.
Hope speaks at venues and conferences all over the world and has appeared frequently on television, including Today, Good Morning America, CNN, KTLA, CBC, and Good Morning Australia. Trained as a life coach by Martha Beck International and with additional training in narrative therapy, she also does one-on-one work to help individuals explore loss as a means of personal growth.
Hope has two daughters and lives outside of Los Angeles (with summers in Iowa City).
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Facilitator, Recent Loss Motherless Daughters Community Calls
Angela Schellenberg is a licensed Mental Health Trauma, Grief, and loss Psychotherapist.
Angela specializes in addressing the complex challenges associated with trauma, grief, and loss. She is trained in attachment, EMDR, TF-CBT, and Trauma Certified.
Angela is a “Mother Hunger” facilitator, drawing from the insightful work of therapist and author Kelly McDaniel. She co-facilitates Motherless Daughter retreats with Hope Edelman.
Angela offers a range of therapeutic approaches to meet the unique needs of her clients.
Angela came into this grief work after losing both of her parents by the time she was twenty-two. Her father to gun violence when she was sixteen and her mother died six years later after a long struggle with mental health and trauma.
Angela is no stranger to learning how to navigate grief and loss. She finds that it’s possible to process your grief and create a beautiful life after trauma. It’s constant work and you are worth it.
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Co-Facilitator, Recent Loss Motherless Daughters Community Calls
Devin Brinkley, an active member of the Motherless Daughters Community Calls, experienced the profound loss of her mother in 2021, a mere month following her father's passing due to diabetes complications. She found solace and support in the Motherless Daughters community, which played a pivotal role in her healing process, inspiring her to contribute more significantly to the community.
Passionate about supporting others dealing with parent loss, Devin extends her empathy and experience to women and children facing similar challenges. She also plays a vital role as a mentor and Program Coordinator at Empower, a non-profit dedicated to mentoring children and young adults who have experienced the loss of a parent.
Devin resides in Southern Maryland with her family, which includes her husband, their two sons, two beloved dogs, and a tortoise.
What’s the cost?
Three calls per month for only $59/month — that’s less than $20 per call!
New participants are warmly welcomed at each call Please note: If you sign-up after Week Two of any month, your participation will begin with the first call of the next month. We regret that we cannot start a new member in the third week of any month.
Scholarship Opportunities: Motherless Daughters is committed to providing services to all daughters in need. We offer partial or full scholarships to those who need assistance, with special priority given to BIPOC and LGBTQ individuals, single parents, students, and anyone facing financial challenges due to health issues. For scholarship inquiries, please reach out to us at info@hopeedelman.com.
Please note: Motherless Daughters Community Calls is a monthly subscription, Your card will be charged $59 each month starting from your sign-up date. You're free to cancel at any time before your next billing cycle by emailing info@hopeedelman.com with UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject line.
“When I lost my mother I was in the dark. I was unmoored, without direction on how to even hope to find my home again. Not knowing what to do, and looking to make sense of my loss, I did a Google search and found the Motherless Daughters Community. The Community Calls shined a light on a dark path, and offered a way out. It made me feel heard, understood, validated. It gave me purpose in holding space for others, while at the same time, offering a safe place to learn how to live, cope with, and move forward in this new chapter of life I now find myself in.”
— Ashley, Pennsylvania
LOOKING FOR THE LINK?
If you join before Week 2, you will receive the WELCOME EMAIL for that month. If you join AFTER Week 2, you will receive a Welcome Email for the next FULL month of calls.
The WELCOME EMAIL will have all the important details and links within 24 hours of registering. If you don’t see it, please check by searching your spam and promotions folders for an email from info@hopeedelman.com.
You can also add this email address to your "safe sender" list.
Haven't received the email after 24 hours? Please let us know by sending an email to info@hopeedelman.com.
PLEASE NOTE:
Motherless Daughters Community Calls are not intended to be a substitute for therapy. They are a place where you can receive peer support, not clinical assistance. Our facilitators are not licensed therapists. We reserve the right to steer conversation saway from sensitive material that would be better addressed in a therapeutic setting. We ask that you refrain from sharing intricate details about traumatic loss or childhood abuse that may be emotionally triggering for other participants on the call.
TO UNSUBSCRIBE & CANCEL YOUR SUBSCRIPTION:
To cancel your subscription for the next month of MDCCs, please send an email to info@hopeedelman.com with UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject line.
Please contact us within 48 hours of your billing date, so we can cancel before your next cycle.
If you contact us after your payment has gone through, you will receive the three calls of that month, but your card will not be charged again.