She Took a Solo Honeymoon After Her Fiancé Died—And Discovered Life Was Still Worth Living

Laura Murphy was supposed to be walking down the aisle in May 2024 with her fiancé Devon O’Grady. One month before the wedding, Devon suffered a ruptured aortic aneurysm at work and died instantly. He was 32, healthy, athletic, and had no warning signs. After three months of grief so heavy she could barely get out of bed, Laura made a decision that surprised everyone, including herself: she was going to take their honeymoon anyway. She booked a six-week solo trip through Europe, visiting London, Paris, Rome, Marrakech, and Dublin—places Devon loved and places they’d dreamed about experiencing together.

What Laura didn’t expect was how transformative the journey would be. She connected with Devon’s family members who traveled parts of the trip with her, made new friends, and experienced moments of genuine joy alongside the grief. When she got home, she posted a vulnerable TikTok about the experience that went viral instantly—over 4 million views from people who saw themselves in her story. Suddenly, Laura wasn’t alone in her pain. Millions of people dealing with their own loss found comfort in watching her prove that you could honor someone you lost while also honoring yourself and your right to live fully.

Now 30 years old, Laura has written a book called“The Solo Honeymoon: A Brief Beautiful True Love Story”that chronicles not just the trip, but the three-year romance with Devon and what it means to carry grief forward. She says she’ll never fully move on from losing him, but the honeymoon taught her something essential: that she was strong enough to survive the unsurvivable, and that Devon would be proud of her for choosing to live. What does healing look like for you after loss? Share your story in the comments.