Influencer Melissa Mae Carlton and her husband Tom Carlton are mourning the unexpected death of their daughter Molly, one year after the loss of their daughter Abi.
“On Christmas morning, our sweet Molly girl, and her big sister Abi were reunited 💔,” Melissa wrote via Instagram on December 26, referring to daughter Abigail. “This is the only thing giving me even a small sense of comfort. Molly missed her sister so deeply. She would often ask me, ‘Mummy, when is Jesus coming back so Abi can come down?’”
Abi died in April 2024 after battling sepsis at 9 years old. Since then, Melissa has shared her grief journey with her followers on social media, often posting content that’s meant to help others who are walking the same walk.
“So much of grief is physical. One less breakfast plate, one less school lunch to make, one less bedtime hug,” Melissa wrote in a since-deleted post from August 2025. “A body missing from our home, a whole person.”
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Melissa has become a beacon for others who have had similar experiences, and her words clearly impact many of her social media followers. Keep scrolling to read more about what Melissa has said about grief.
Take Photos And Videos
“Get in the photos, Mama,” Melissa encouraged her followers in a since deleted post shared on Instagram on September 25, 2025. “I learned the hard way.”
Melissa noted that she’s “always been good at documenting” and as a result, hasn’t always been photographed or recorded alongside her children.
“Now, going through endless photos and videos, I’m grateful I have them all of Abi over the years 🥹… but heartbroken I can’t see myself with her in them 💔,” she added.
She Wants It To Be Clear Children Live In Her Home
In December 2025, Melissa noted that prior to Abi’s death she was focused on making sure her home looked perfect.
“One thing child loss has taught me is that I’m done wanting my house to feel like a show home. I want it cozy. Lived in. With clear evidence that children live here,” she explained in a since-deleted post.
Faith And Confusion Can Coexist
Melissa, who is Mormon, often reflects on the intersection of faith and grief on Instagram. In November 2025, she shared photos from the March 2025 Life After Loss Conference at BYU, telling her social media followers, “Faith and confusion can coexist.”
“This conference was so meaningful. I learned so much about grief — not just from an educational perspective, but from a spiritual one too,” she also wrote. “It was fascinating to hear things that resonated deeply… and others that haven’t been part of my experience (at least not yet).”
Real Needs Are Invisible
“Most people understand the visible parts of grief—tears, funerals, condolences… but so many of our real needs are invisible,” Melissa explained in since-deleted post from October 2025. She went on to explain that those needs can include “to be witnessed not fixed” and “to be remembered long after the funeral.”
Grief Is Physical
Though grief is often considered a mental and emotional experience, it’s physical, too, she explained in since-deleted post from August 2025.
“So much of grief is physical. One less breakfast plate, one less school lunch to make, one less bedtime hug,” Melissa wrote. “A body missing from our home, a whole person.”
Leaving Signs Of Remembrance Helps
One thing friends and family members can do to support people while they grieve is to leave mementos at the graves of their lost loved one, Melissa said in a July 2025 video that has since been deleted.
“Most people never think of this… but it means everything to us 🥹,” she captioned a video of herself and her family at Abi’s grave. “If you don’t know what to do for a grieving friend—try this. Visit their loved one’s grave. Leave something behind. A note. A toy. A piece of jewelry. A painted rock. Because one of our biggest fears is that she’ll be forgotten 💔.”
Movement Is Key
In a video shared in April 2025, Melissa noted that sometimes, grief is best managed when movement is incorporated into the day.
“Hear me out: ‘Hard’ doesn’t have to be huge,” she explained. “Your hard could be something as small as taking a shower, going for a short walk, or just getting one thing done that you need to today.”
She then shared an analogy that relates grief and stress to a pond.
“I love this analogy of the stagnant pond,” Melissa continued. “Grief, stress, and heavy emotions can settle in us like a stagnant pond-still, murky, and heavy with things that haven’t been processed. Without movement, the water becomes cloudy, filled with buildup that slowly drains its life and clarity.”
You Can’t “Get Over” Loss
Survivors and people who are grieving are sometimes encouraged to just “get over” their feelings — something Melissa addressed directly in March 2025.
“There’s no getting ‘over it,’” she explained. “If they’re sad, they don’t need fixing. This is how loosing someone feels.”
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Grief Is A Permanent Companion
Perhaps one of the more poignant things Melissa has shared is that grief will never leave someone after a catastrophic loss.
“In my world, grief is now a permanent companion. It lingers peripherally & subconsciously,” she wrote in a post shared via Instagram in March 2025. “I feel it in my body even when my mind isn’t fully focused on it. But then, without warning, it jumps out front and center. In those moments, it’s the full weight of it all hitting me again, like hearing the news for the first time over & over.”
