By Shya Gibbons of Vintage Dreams With A Modern Twist

Warning: This post contains minor series spoilers of past The Walking Dead seasons.

Part of my biography states that I binge watch television series and become overly attached to fictional characters.  I am not downplaying how serious I am about that. While I have always loved reading books, I also enjoyed relaxing and watching movies.

My snuggle bug son was born 6 weeks prematurely after I spent my entire high-risk pregnancy on bed rest. After delivery, I was hit pretty hard by Post Partum Depression (PPD), but this was years ago and it was not as spoken about then as it is now. Actually, if I can be honest, I think more people need to speak up about it. At that point, PPD had the stigma attached from all of the gruesome news articles that would float around “mother of four drowns kids.” Things like that. My PPD was the opposite. I always viewed myself as never good enough. My perfect, adorable baby deserved a better mother.

I didn’t talk to many people about it. I shut myself off. Thankfully, my son slept a lot the first few months, which gave me time to sleep or watch television. I had heard incredible things about the show The Walking Dead and figured that I would give it a shot. It instantly hooked me. Not only did it hook me, but I also used it as an escape. I had it playing all day, every day. They became my safety net, my television family. I watched the first few seasons for weeks on end until the new season started.

During the mid-season finale, Hershel Greene was killed. This was at the height of my PPD, and Hershel and Glenn were my favorites. I sobbed. It hurt to my soul. The death of a fictional character had me crying uncontrollably. I still cannot watch any of his seasons.

On Sunday, October 23 The Walking Dead will premiere its conclusion to a shocking cliffhanger. One of the beloved characters will be killed. I have two people who watch at the same time as I do just in case Glenn gets killed. I cannot watch that. I physically cannot. Eventually, I stopped and thought to myself, ‘That is ridiculous. It is just a character on a television show.’

I stopped what I was doing and sat down, really thinking on this. It is just a television show. To me, it is so much more, though. Those familiar faces got me through my worst of days and my darkest nights. I used a zombie apocalypse as an escape from reality, and oddly enough, it seemed to help. I have watched the cast grow up and age, as well as myself and my son.

For me, The Walking Dead helped me through a tough time, and as my favorite character’s life hangs in the balance, I wait to receive texts that either Glenn Rhee does not die, or that he does; if he does, my friends know to text me after so I don’t have to see it.

For me, it was The Walking Dead that helped me. Maybe Gilmore Girls helped you and your friends through a hard breakup. Maybe you have a favorite character in a book that dies and every time you read it, you fall in love with them all over again, knowing the entire time what the outcome will be. But you keep reading anyway.

It is not weird. It is not ridiculous. If you’re upset by a character’s death, then mourn it. Memories get attached to everything. People, places, and times are glued together by other aspects of your life. Maybe a certain movie reminds you of the time you got snowed in at your grandparents’ house and everyone snuggled up with hot chocolate. Or maybe a movie highlighted a snapshot second of your life where you accomplished something you worked hard for.

My take away from this is, it is ok to cry. You have watched these actors and characters grow up. You have seen their ups and downs. You have cheered when they beat the bad guys and cried when we lost one of our own. I hope this sends solace to those who need it and to those who think they are too attached. We all are too something, and sometimes letting go is the hardest part.

Glenn, I am rooting for you, and if it is your final episode, know that there are people across the entire world that will be sad to see you leave. If you do survive, go to Hill Top. Seriously. Just go.

*****

About the Author

Shya Gibbons is a full-time CEO (also called a stay-at-home-mom) to a precocious, blue-eyed two-year-old, and runs the blog Vintage Dreams With A Modern Twist. She is happily married to a gorgeous man who doubles as her best friend, and who loves her even on her worst days. She was born, raised and still lives in a picturesque small town where she has stacked up hundreds of bylines at the local newspaper. When she is not writing for fun, she likes to cook big dinners and bake. In her free time she likes to binge watch seasons of shows at a time where she gets far too attached to fictional characters. Her work was recently featured in I Just Want To Be Perfect, the fourth book in an anthology that has been on the New York Times Best Sellers. You can find more of her work on Facebook.