We know everyone deals in their own way, we're just not quite sure which stage of grief requires a nonstop publicity tour.
Whichever one it is, Gary Coleman's self-fashioned widow (they weren't technically married at the time of his death) is soldiering on...and on.
The latest stop on her media blitz? Good Morning America, where Shannon Price described her relationship with Gary as "golden" and revealed that the duo had planned to renew their marital vows (or, technically, remarry) in the very near future.
"We decided that wasn't what we wanted," she said of their 2008 divorce. "We just had a disagreement and after we both filed and it went through we decided that wasn't what we—it wasn't the right choice.
"We were gonna renew our vows soon but our health issues got in the way, so we weren't able to do that. Every couple has their moments but we loved each other. It was golden. He was always my husband regardless of the divorce and what people say."
As it happens, people are now saying that her revelation is more than a little convenient, as she was not named in the will Coleman left behind. Her attorney, however, has argued that Gary had always intended for his once (and apparently future) wife to be provided for.
As for the health issues that got in the way of their plan, Price's were apparent during her latest sitdown, as she arrived in a wheelchair, remained in it for the whole of the interview and even briefly stopped proceedings after thinking she was experiencing a seizure.
And while plenty of negative rumors have run rampant against Price in the wake of Coleman's death, those that have most plagued her are the ones that speculate she had something to do with his passing, either by pushing him to cause his initial fall—a claim she vehemently denies—or that she did not think through pulling the actor off life support.
"People can say whatever they want 'cause I know the truth. I would never hurt my husband, ever. I would take my own life before I would ever, ever harm him.
"The doctors advised me that, you know, it was grim and, you know, he went into cardiac arrest as well and the doctors advised me that this was the best thing for him."
She reiterated those comments in a stop on Entertainment Tonight, saying she did what was "best for him," and claiming that "he was already a vegetable."
She also revealed to ET Coleman's last words: "He said, "I love you and my head hurts.' Those were the last he said to me because he was in a lot of pain."
As for her life now, Shannon said it has been difficult and not just emotionally.
"We've been struggling a lot with financial stuff but now that Gary's gone it's been a little more difficult," she explained to GMA. And while Gary's death came as a shock to fans, it apparently had been a topic of conversation for him and Shannon before.
"I just hope Gary's happy and he's in a better place and he's not suffering anymore with all the health issues he's had over the years," she said.
Price confirmed Todd Bridges earlier comments that Coleman had heart-valve-replacement surgery and the prognosis wasn't optimistic.
"After he had heart surgery they said he wouldn't make it a year...Then he had a new dialysis access catheter put in and they still said that they didn't think he was going to make it a year," she told ET.
"I'm just happy that he's finally peaceful and at rest," she told GMA. "We've discussed about death a few times and he said it would be very unfair if he left me all of a sudden, and, I mean, I really respect that. I loved him and he loved me and we just can't live without each other."
But she will find a way to do just that.
"I gotta go on with my life and I gotta be positive and think positive and get my health figured out and straightened out."
As for Coleman's nixed weekend memorial plans, Price told GMA that the actor didn't want a funeral or any type of ceremony and instead wanted to be cremated. His body remains in a Utah mortuary and no new funeral plans have been made.
(Originally published June 7, 2010, at 7:53 a.m. PT)