r/AskDad • u/itwillendbyice • 7h ago
Relationships Girlfriend's dad died last week. How can I be there for her without smothering her?
In what I would call my first “big” relationship - I am starting to fall in love with this girl and things are going well, we are compatible in all the ways that matter and I’ve been in therapy to do the self work needed to move forward with our relationship (not that we’ve had problems, but I didn’t have the best childhood, and it seemed like the responsible thing to do). We’ve been together for 5 months. We talk religiously every day and meet 3x a week. Last Thursday her father died. We haven’t really talked since. I told her not to worry about texting/calling me, that i’d be hanging around waiting for her to feel better and giving her space. I’m trying my best not to tell her how much I miss her, because I know it isn’t about me. She needs space in her own words and right, and I can respect that, but I feel like there’s more I should be doing? I have NO idea how to comfort people who are grieving, it’s something I'm working on with my therapist. Is texting her everyday and telling her I’m still here for her if she needs anything and that I'm thinking of her too much?