A Bill of Rights for Grieving Animal Lovers

It is Hereby Declared that Grieving Animal Lovers have the Right:

To feel the pain of grief when the bonds with our pets are broken. The bonds we have with our companion animals are deep and strong; the pain we feel when those bonds are broken is real and worthy of our grief.

Caregiving and Hospice, October 21 - October 27, 2012

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• Ira Byock: Physician-Assisted Suicide Is Not Progressive, http://j.mp/Rp96RW « The Atlantic
  
  
• Lovely! How to Shoot a Photo to Remember - http://j.mp/TL0ovz « New York Times
  
  
• Great emotional health resources for hospice and palliative care http://bit.ly/RkpFAa from @VirtualHospice via @HospiceMayCourt
  
  
• Some caregiving tips for those caring for someone with multiple health issues, http://j.mp/SL1xVx via @CarrieSteckl
  
  
• New caregiving links to care, hospice, prescription reminders, Medicare news, http://j.mp/VtbRl3

Understanding and Managing Grief, October 21 - October 27, 2012

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• Grief and the Holidays: Resources,Tips for Everyone, http://ow.ly/eNpCT via @HRRV
  
  
• On pregnancy, infant loss: STILL Project, http://j.mp/Y3FZ9V « Grieving Dads Project
  
  
• Good read! Grief: What If I Can Hold On and Let Go, http://j.mp/P8Btpg
  
  
• Do Men and Women Grieve Differently? Not Always, j.mp/U541Nw « Grief Toolbox
  
  
• Memory of My Darkest Moment Can Change a Life, j.mp/R282l4

Coping with Pet Loss, October 21 - October 27, 2012

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• Study:Overcoming Grief an Important Factor in Future Pet Ownership, http://ow.ly/eJatL via @DrMaryCraig
  
  
• Getting a new pet after pet loss, http://bit.ly/Se3Q4V by @MarianneSoucy

The Widowed Pen Pal Program

The following comes to us from Michele Neff Hernandez, founder of Soaring Spirits Loss Foundation, and I'm delighted to share it here:

The SSLF Widowed Pen Pal program, formerly known as Widow Match, can connect you with a peer with whom you can share the ups and downs of the widowhood journey. You may choose to connect by email, phone, or whatever feels comfortable.

Peer support can be an invaluable resource for widowed people of all ages. You might talk about things other people don't understand, air feelings that are overwhelming, or just discuss what happened during your day. Most of all, you will know that you are not alone. Note: Peer support does not take the place of professional counseling, is not a forum for spiritual guidance, or financial or legal advice. These friendships should not be a burden on either party.

The SSLF Widowed Pen Pal program is the only program like this anywhere, with a track record of outstanding friendships since 2009. The SSLF Widowed Pen Pal program is just one of Soaring Spirits Loss Foundation’s innovative and lifesaving programs for widows and widowers.

Caregiving and Hospice, October 14 - October 20, 2012

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• Helpful resources for all: Family Caregiving 101, http://bit.ly/HnGtNE via @rightathome
  
  
• DeVitto: No One Deserves to Die Alone, http://j.mp/TwyXFY
  
  
• Helpful! Senior Care Terms Explained: Common Senior Care Terms, http://j.mp/Tg2k4Z « Caring.com
  
  
• "With great insight about whether seeing a specialist matters," http://ow.ly/eu34h « GriefHealing via @DeytaLLC
  
  

Understanding and Managing Grief, October 14 - October 20, 2012

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• Lou LaGrand: Working To Become Resilient When Mourning, http://j.mp/T3a0RV
  
  
• Powerful: widower struggles to go on: "I'm So Tired," http://j.mp/TC0A0C « Widow's Voice
  
  
• Choose to mourn the many losses not typically associated with grief, http://j.mp/Vkr5hS by @judybrizendine
  
  
• In Memory of My Sister on the 5th Anniversary of Her Death, http://j.mp/OPd4F8 by @DrCHibbert via @TheGriefToolbox
  
  
• Helpful and informative! Grieving Online, http://j.mp/R4CLkX

Coping with Pet Loss, October 14 - October 20, 2012

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• How hospice for pets comforts owners too, http://j.mp/TgdqXU via @PathwysHealth

• Pets on Pinterest: How images can be healing after pet loss, http://bit.ly/XnceAr
  
  
• What To Do When A Friend Loses A Pet, http://j.mp/QXczq1 « Psychology Today
  
  
• Animal Hospice: What it is and what it's not, http://j.mp/PC53o4

Seeing a Specialist in Grief Counseling: Does It Matter?

Source

A reader writes: I’ve been suffering from depression for a long time and am under the care of a psychiatrist. I went to see my doctor for the first time since my father died and was a complete wreck since I had to re-tell what happened. I was crying because it's hard to talk about Dad's sudden downfall and last day, but my psychiatrist seemed to think that I was being overly emotional. I tried to tell him that I'm not upset every day and that I didn't think that my sadness less than five months after Dad's death was abnormal. I did confess to doing some stupid things immediately after he passed and how hard some things have been, but I walked out of his office feeling like I should be over it. 

Caregiving and Hospice, October 7 - October 13, 2012

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• GeriTech: Neat new way for families to find in-home caregivers, http://j.mp/OYOWBc
  
  
• Saturday, October 13 is World Hospice and Palliative Care Day! http://ow.ly/eoCOC
  
  
• Christian Sinclair on Why We Should Get on Twitter, http://j.mp/RTA4Ck « GeriPal
  
  
• 3 Generations Gather for End-of-Life Conversation, http://j.mp/RmwzFj « ABC News
  
  
• For many, hospice eases relationships, http://j.mp/WXhkTQ

Understanding and Managing Grief, October 7 - October 13, 2012

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• Helping The Grief-Stricken Prepare For Grief Triggers, http://j.mp/SQme4y 
  
  
• Grief In The Second Year: Finding Your Way, http://j.mp/wRiJJS 
  
  
• Child Loss and "Unsubstantiated Guilt," http://j.mp/OWIg6z
  
  
• Outstanding review of history of the DSM: "Never intended to be a bible," http://j.mp/TfmSVf via @dr_cacciatore
  
  
• Lovely! "Yielding to the Season of Grief," http://j.mp/RbbiOJ « YouTube

Coping with Pet Loss, October 7 - October 13, 2012

Best selection from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• Helping Children Cope with the Death of a Pet, http://bit.ly/xafOeB via @Kidlutions

Grief Support: When Others Fail to Meet Our Expectations

[Reviewed and updated April 7, 2024]

At the moment, take heart from those around you who want to care for you and be present for you in your distress. They don't always know how, they don't always do it right, but they try. Sorrow is a matter of taking turns. This year, it's yours. Next year, it might be you setting the table for someone else who feels that they cannot cope. ~ Deidre Felton, in Bereavement Magazine, November/December 2000.

In an earlier post I shared the observation that, no matter how good their intentions, people may find it difficult to know what to say or do when we are struggling with the loss of a beloved family pet. But what happens when we’re anticipating or coping with the death of a person dearly loved?

Caregiving and Hospice, September 30 - October 6, 2012

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• Palliative care is not the same as hospice, http://ow.ly/earjG via @AHHCNC
  
  
• Hospice of the Valley nurse recognized for work in LGBT community, http://bit.ly/QvbHt6 via @hospicepharmacy
  
  
• Hospice Awareness Campaign launches in Nebraska, http://j.mp/UFPCIl
  
  
• Wisconsin men's end-of-life documentary makes waves, http://j.mp/QsgefO
  
  
• 9 Organizations Every Caregiver Should Know, http://j.mp/UEhSLo « Caring.com

Understanding and Managing Grief, September 30 - October 6, 2012

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• Grief Watch Monthly Newsletter now available here, http://j.mp/SI4bct by @griefwatch
  
  
• Widowed people review "Go On," new NBC Matthew Perry sitcom about grief, http://j.mp/OakUZy
  
  
• Excellent! Parenting After the Death of a Child, http://ow.ly/ebEmd from @hospicecalgary via @virtualhospice
  
  
• Updated: Grief Bibliography, recommended by the bereaved for the bereaved, http://j.mp/9J8Wa4
  
  
• Child Loss and Guilt: Is it Time to Forgive Yourself? http://j.mp/SCufWh « Grief Digest Magazine

Coping with Pet Loss, September 30 - October 6, 2012

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• For person loss or pet loss: beautiful images with quotes for Pinterest boards, http://bit.ly/Qwzwm0 via @MarianneSoucy
  
  
• Uncle writes adorable letter to kids from their dog who died, http://j.mp/Sz8YTK via @editorialmama

Silent Grief: Pregnancy and Infant Loss

[Reviewed and updated August 22, 2024] 

Our duty is to remember them so their place in our lives is one of beauty, a beauty beyond this world. Our duty is to love them boldly, wildly, with every part of our being, and to carry their spirit into the world. ~ Dr. Joanne Cacciatore

A reader writes: It’s been two weeks since my baby died. I was 6 1/2 months pregnant. She had been extremely active ever since I first started feeling her move, but at around 22 or 23 weeks there were days when she wouldn't move at all. At 26 weeks, when I hadn't felt any movement for two days straight, my doctor ordered a full ultrasound, which showed no movement at all, although there was a heartbeat.