Sunday, October 31, 2021

Understanding and Managing Grief and Pet Loss, October 24 - October 30, 2021

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

When COVID-19 began to spread throughout the U.S., our team felt a strong call of action in response to the overwhelming mental health crisis we saw unfolding before us. We began to explore online resources that could help bereaved people address their grief, manage their painful emotions, build resilience, and improve their mental health and well-being. COVID-Internet Resource Guide « Stony Brook University (pdf) 

Monday, October 25, 2021

On The Anniversary of A Parent’s Death: What Words Help?

[Reviewed and updated July 23, 2024]

The word 'anniversary' takes on a whole new meaning for widow/ers, or for any griever. An anniversary date is any meaningful date to you and your loved one. The hardest anniversary date usually is the one that commemorates the day of the death.
  ~ Ellen Gerst

A reader writes: I have read several of your posts. I am familiar with your wisdom and advice. I just wanted to ask, Marty .... what would you have wanted to hear from friends close to you --on the first anniversary of the day a parent has passed? What words are there to formulate at such a sad day -- which also offers an ear of support? Would it be a heartbreaking reminder of his loss, or rather an appreciated thought -- if I chose to send a sympathy card?

Sunday, October 24, 2021

Understanding and Managing Grief, October 17 - October 23, 2021

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

Lately I’ve been pondering the word resilience. It doesn’t mean keeping your chin up and being okay no matter what happens. It DOES NOT MEAN THAT. Our society has such a limited collective opinion about human emotion. Bright, bubbly happiness gets way too much press. Cultivating Resilience « AfterTalk

Monday, October 18, 2021

In Grief: Did I Hasten My Father's Death?

[Reviewed and updated August 23, 2022]

I would rather be punished for making the right decision than live with the guilt of making the wrong one for the rest of my life.  
~ Shannon Messenger

A reader writes: My father passed away recently and I’m struggling with so much guilt. He had been battling cancer for nearly ten years. It started with prostate cancer and then spread to bones and I’m not sure if to a different area as well. He did radiation, chemo, oral chemo, and other treatments as well.

Sunday, October 17, 2021

Understanding and Managing Grief & Pet Loss, October 10 - October 16, 2021

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

The loss of a pet can be very painful; for us animal lovers, it can hit as hard as losing a human loved one. This pain isn’t helped by a lack of understanding and social support many of us experience after losing a pet. However, a new study reveals that saying goodbye to a pet can be as painful as losing a human loved one, and here’s why. Why losing a dog feels the same as losing a loved one « Newsner

Monday, October 11, 2021

Pet Loss: Waiting for Biopsy Results

Bad news is bad news because it drops your willingness to carry on.  ~ Meir Ezra

A reader writes: Yesterday I found out that my beloved Heidi has a tumor. It has not been confirmed if it is cancerous. We are waiting for the results of the pathology. I know the best thing for her is to be put to sleep and I can't stop thinking about it. She has been with us since she was 5 weeks old and she will turn 13 in March. She has been through so much with me that she is more like one of my children. I never thought in a million years a dog would mean so much to me and I would be so attatched. Thanks for listening to me and any suggestions are welcome.

Sunday, October 10, 2021

Understanding and Managing Grief, October 3 - October 9, 2021

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

Well after the intense grief of an immediate loss has faded, and you think you’ve moved on, something happens out of the blue to revive it. Coping with grief triggers « IOL

Monday, October 4, 2021

In Grief: Coping with Anger at God

[Reviewed and updated November 7, 2023]

What fire does not destroy, it hardens.   ~ Oscar Wilde

A reader writes: Our daughter was only 41 years old when she died of heart failure a year ago, leaving her three sons behind. Just a little over one week ago, their home caught fire and burned to the ground, taking her dog with the fire. As we stood looking at the burned out shell of our daughter’s house, we were in shock.

Sunday, October 3, 2021

Understanding and Managing Grief, September 26 - October 2, 2021

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

What happened when one writer met with a medium in an attempt to connect with her Dad, who had died seven years ago. Can a medium cure grief? One writer tried to find out « Yahoo!

After the 18 months we have all experienced, time invested now in reflection can provide rich dividends in our emotional, mental, spiritual, and physical well-being as 2022 begins in only a few months. Lengthening Shadows: Autumn As A Reflective Season « Grief Perspectives