A Canadian woman has become an inspiration on TikTok after documenting her solo honeymoon following the sudden death of her fiancé a month before their wedding.
Laura Murphy’s life was shattered when her partner Devon O’Grady, 31, passed away in May following a cardiac event.
She was immediately flooded with support from friends and family, but felt isolated in her grief.
Fed up of being at home and ‘feeling guilty’ for not living her life, she decided to continue with the honeymoon they had booked to England, ‘to see if life is still worth living’.
What began as a way to process her grief and encourage her to head out each day became an overnight sensation as other widows and those touched by her situation began to tune in.
Laura Murphy has become an internet star after documenting her solo honeymoon following the sudden death of her fiancé Devon O’Grady a month before their wedding
‘It’s very lonely and isolating because I knew no one my age who had lost a partner,’ she told The Washington Post. ‘I needed to find people who could relate because I wanted to know how to go on.’
‘I also felt I needed to remove myself from my hometown and our house. I was just sort of sitting there for months not knowing what to do with myself.
Her account is filled with scenes from her travels across London and most recently France.
But among the solo dinners and lone concerts, Murphy includes moments of her raw unfiltered grief – admitting there are times where she has to crawl into bed or just needs a ‘good cry’.
Her decision to document her experiences has come as a surprise to those that know her, but especially Murphy who describes herself as a ‘private’ person.
‘It’s very out of character for me to be traveling alone, and it’s even more out of character to be documenting it for the world,’ she said.
Before his death, she and O’Grady lived a full life together in Newfoundland with their Bernedoodles Leni and Chewy.
The couple met at work after Murphy, a lawyer, interviewed for a position but got stuck in the stairwell on her way to meet her boss.
Murphy’s fiancé died following a cardiac event in May
O’Grady came to her aid after hearing ‘banging’ from the other side of a door and the two struck up a friendship which blossomed into romance.
He died in May in the office across from Murphy’s, a fact which still haunts her.
In one video, Murphy describes being ‘triggered’ by the sound of an ambulance siren.
Her decision to travel was born from the belief that her fiancé would want her to go and enjoy life, even if all she wants is to be with him she explains in one clip.
Murphy was motivated to travel after coming across and being ‘inspired’ by other young widows in similar circumstances who had done the same.
But it has not been without its challenges. In one TikTok, Murphy explains how she has met up with her best friend and maid of honor and her fiancé in Nice, France not long after she and O’Grady had been away with the couple.
‘The parallels between that trip and this one were not lost on me, so it was really hard,’ Murphy admitted.
But since posting about her experience, Murphy has found a huge online community which has been supporting her journey.
‘I have truly been so overwhelmed with all of the love and I wish I could respond to everyone and hang out with you all,’ she said through tears in one TikTok addressing her new-found fame.
‘I remember saying to my dad, “I need you to find me someone who has been through this” because I needed evidence that it was possible to survive it.’
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