People cope and face grief differently. Some look to hobbies, other looks to social life, while some may be introvert. In this story, a woman turns to reading to help her go through the process of grief.
People turn to different venues to deal with grief and reading is so no exception. Please also review our Bereavement Counseling Program
The article, “How Reading Helped This Woman Process Her Grief” by Bethanne Patrick states,
“In All the Lives We Ever Lived: Seeking Solace in Virginia Woolf, Smyth turns to an unlikely source of solace after her father’s death: her favorite book, Woolf’s 1927 masterpiece To the Lighthouse. Blending analysis of a deeply literary novel with a personal story is a high-wire act for many reasons, not least being how few readers will have read Woolf themselves.”
Like music, when someone can relate to a story, one is more apt to use it as motivation or find solace in it. This was the case in the story above of how a woman found herself in the story. This can definitely help some cope. Please also review our Bereavement Counseling Program
Good article on the story of a single father who faced the mental issues of his spouse and taught his children how to grieve. This story reveals how one must grieve but also fulfill other duties to children especially. It points to the love of a parent to care for one’s children despite all pain.
Parenting and grief unfortunately meet quite frequently. Please also review our Grief Counseling Courses
The article, “My dad’s lesson in parenting through grief, served with a side of eggs” byMarjorie Clark Brimley relates how her father continued to parent despite grief, teaching the children the importance of proper coping. The article states,
“When I was growing up, my mother’s mental illness meant that she did not wake up early. It also meant that she never made me breakfast, even though she was the parent who stayed home. Fortunately, early on my father had mastered the art of a scrambled egg, buttered toast and limited conversation. That was enough to bring my teenage self to the table each day.”
A sudden death is always tragic. It is unexpected and because of that can cause more trauma than an expected death. Noone is truly prepared to see a loved one pass away but sudden death can cause many issues for the grieving. In particular, the nature of the death, as well as unresolved issues due to the sudden passing, can all cause more intense grief reactions.
A sudden loss can be very painful and filled with complications.. Please also review our Grief Counseling Program
The article, “How can I deal with someone’s sudden death?”by Diana Sebzda takes a closer look at this. The article states,
“It is not unusual for us to hear the stories of sudden deaths that take families and loved ones by surprise. It is also not unusual to hear, “I can’t believe they aren’t here anymore!” “I just spoke with them on the phone. How could this have happened?” “We just retired. We were going to do so much. We even planned a trip for next week!”
Good article on dealing with anxiety, depression and mental illness. These things should not be a stigma but treated as any other health issue. Mental health is key to an overall healthy life.
Mental health is as important as physical health. Please also review our Grief Counseling Certification
The article, “Dealing With Anxiety, Mental Illness and Grief” by Judith Newman states,
“Anxiety” is a mild term for what can be a severe mental illness. In fact, anxiety disorders of various degrees are among the most common mental illnesses in America, affecting more than one in five adults.
With anxiety being so common, as well as depression, we as a society need to be more focused on helping others through these things. Certified Grief Counselors can help identify these more complicated health issues and direct individuals to licensed counselors for help. Please also review our Grief Counseling Certification to learn more how you can help. The program is open to licensed counselors as well.
Ecological grief is becoming more a common reality in society. Ecological grief deals with the collective and social mindset of our times in dealing with the losses in our environment. As global warming continues, pollution increases, and natural landscapes destroyed, society is sensing the collective loss. This loss is something we all deal with on a day to day basis.
Ecological Grief affects everyone in society. Please also review our Grief Counseling Certification
The article,”It’s Time to Talk About Ecological Grief” by Michaela Cavanaugh states,
But a growing body of evidence demonstrates that climate change and its effects are linked to elevated rates of depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, post-traumatic stress, and a host of negative emotions including anger, hopelessness, despair, and a feeling of loss. Researchers have dubbed these feelings “ecological grief.”
Grief can kill. It is true. Most individuals may not think of the reaction to loss as a killer, but it is. This is especially the case in elderly couples who experience the heartache of losing a life long partner.
Grief can break the hearts of the elderly and cause death. Please also review our Grief Counseling Program
The article, “Grief Can Actually Kill You, And Scientists Have Figured Out Why” by Peter Dockrill states,
“Now, scientists have discovered new evidence for why broken hearts and widowhood are in themselves a deadly danger to the recently bereaved – decoding hidden biological markers associated with severe cases of the grieving process.”
Stillbirth is a very taboo subject. So much that even in the past, the still born child was not given to the grieving mother or father to hold or see. This has changed recently and the importance of holding the deceased child is critical to grieving. Yet, even after this event, it becomes a very taboo subject that is rarely addressed in later years for fear of bringing up bad memories. This leads to more complications to the grieving parents
Losing a child at birth is not something someone just gets over Please also review our Grief Counseling Certification
The article, ” ‘We want to talk’: Why the silence around stillbirth has to end” by Bruce McMillan states,
“On August 3, 2012, two days after being told that our baby had died in utero at 38 weeks and three days for no known reason, our son, Liam Henry, was stillborn. As a result of our loss we discovered how lacking in empathy most people are to those who have had a stillborn child. They often respond with “Oh, you can just have another child” as if it is just an unfortunate incident, a bit like losing your wallet.”
Young people in general have a difficult time talking about death. The invincible attitude is all too strong in their emotional being. College kids are among the most immune to thoughts of death with a future far ahead. Many are only starting to experience loss in general with the grandparents, or aging parents for the first time. This can lead to avoiding discussions that surround grief and loss.
The thought of loss and death can be very far from the minds of college students
The article, “Grief tough topic for college students” by Christian Cambron discusses this reality on college campuses. The article states,
“The words, “death, dying and dead” are more often spoken in passing or in a joke than with serious and thoughtful sympathy. This phenomenon is even more concentrated on college campuses, where grief can present an added layer of stress with no real outlet.”
National tragedies from natural disasters to shootings are hard for the collective national well-being. They bear down on millions of people creating a hybrid of emotions that affect everyone from rage to sadness. Collectively, an anxiety exists in America of where and when the next national tragedy will occur. Almost weekly, an unnecessary and devastating shooting occurs where innocent individuals die. This ultimately has an affect on Americans.
National tragedies can cause collective grief. Please also review our Grief Counseling Training
First, Americans are affected collectively. They are saddened by the death of innocent people and also enraged at injustice of these incidents. This leads many in collective national grief to expressing themselves politically and publicly. The nation seeks answers but also grieves. Everyone grieves differently and activism is a major venue for many Americans to voice their grief, anger and frustration.
Besides the collective grief and therapeutic methods to combat this national grief, many Americans also experience this grief on a personal level. New fears emerge within everyone. Whether at worship, school, or shopping, the fear of a masked gunman is always in the back of the mind of Americans. This anxiety associated with this national grief is something that all Americans must face. Some Americans will deal with this anxiety by closing themselves up, or others will be proactive and always be vigilant and alert. Other Americans will look to arm themselves to regain that loss sense of security that has been stolen.
Whether through activism for better gun control laws, or through utilizing one’s right to bear arms to defend oneself, the psychological reaction to national grief and tragedy will have profound effects on how Americans cope with these continuing losses.
Of course, the ultimate reality is those who experience these losses directly, whether a survivor of an attack, or a family member who loss a loved one in an attack. Survivors will face a multitude of issues associated with grief, ranging from PTSD to survivor guilt. The attack will be replayed in their minds constantly. What could I have done differently? Or I should have died not my friend! These thoughts will all become thoughts tormenting the survivor. Some survivors will also deal with secondary losses, such as an injury that will haunt them for the rest of their lives, or be tormented mentally with flashbacks from the traumatic event. The road to recovery for a survivor of a shooting is not an easy one indeed
As for family members, a myriad of grief thoughts will cross through their mind. Not only is the loss unexpected, but it is also traumatic and illogical. These family members will face years of torment and second guessing on “why”? This is not an easy fix for these family members either. They will undoubtedly undergo profound changes and look to cope with grief years after in different ways.
After the initial sting, depression and complications of such a horrible loss, family members may look to remember or try to create better laws to try to make some sense for the illogical and unexplainable loss of their loved one.
Bad things can happen and how we handle it is what matters most. Please review our Grief Counseling Training
We already see this anger and coping towards social ills and bad laws by family members in the news, as many of them, as well as survivors, become public figures for gun control laws. This in many ways is the new role they have inherited and a way to make sense out of chaos and remember the lost of their loved one. Whether misdirected or a good idea, gun control laws will remain a central theme in these shootings. Whether it is better control of gun sales, or better laws against those who misuse guns, the public and political spotlight becomes for both sides a way to push an agenda. Sometimes, individuals who are victims of these crimes will use this as a way to heal, while unfortunately many others may be used by various lobbyists to further agendas.
Despite the national grief and agendas, those who suffer these crimes will have a hard and steep uphill battle in dealing with their grief. It will not be an easy journey but one that is necessary in healing and also understanding their new chapter in life. It is a chapter they will not want but a chapter they nonetheless will need to read. As a nation we need to read it with them and help them.
If you are interested in learning more about Grief Counseling Training or would like to become certified in Grief Counseling, then please review the program and see if it matches your academic and professional needs.
It is a true testament of love when we see the bond between man and wife. When one spouse dies before the other, the pain and suffering endured through the separation can literally break the heart of the grieving. In many cases, in older couples especially, we see the following spouse die months later.
Older couples sometimes die in relative close periods of time due to broken heart. Please also review our Grief Counseling Program
The article, “George H.W. Bush Died Less Than 8 Months After His Wife of 73 Years. Doctors Explain Why That’s So Common” by Jamie Ducharme looks at why how George Bush died shortly after his wife and how it follows an all too common pattern of widows and widowers. The article states,
Experts say the emotional devastation of losing a life partner can also take a toll, sometimes even causing a potentially deadly condition commonly known as broken-heart syndrome (or by its medical name, takotsubo cardiomyopathy).
To learn more about death and dying, as well as becoming a certified Grief Counselor, please review our program. Our Grief Counseling Program can help prepare qualified professionals to help others going through loss and grief.
