Understanding and Managing Grief, May 19 - May 25, 2019

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

Kelli Auerbach on becoming an orphan in her 20s: "I’d never understood how much my identity was entwined with being someone’s child." http://j.mp/2I7Z5tF « The New York Times

Things to Consider When Parenting Grieving Children, http://j.mp/2W3sMWe « Heal Grief

Loss, Grief, and Post-traumatic Growth, http://j.mp/2W2HDk2 « The Compassionate Friends

Understanding and Managing Grief, October 14 - October 20, 2018

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

Anxiety and Grief After Losing a Loved One, http://j.mp/2Ail3az « NextAvenue

Review: Sorry For Your Loss is a heartfelt glossary of grief,  http://j.mp/2AjfIzO  « The Spinoff

In Her Defense, I Defined My Journey, http://j.mp/2QZBz4G « Grief Watch

Voices of Experience: Tips to Make Your Way through Grief

You are never really prepared for grief and you can't truly understand it unless you've been there. ~ Anonymous

Kay Oxford is a retired office manager and bookkeeper who lives in the mountains of the northwestern United States with her Alaskan Klee Kai pup Kodie. Since the sudden and unexpected loss of her beloved husband George, who died of a heart attack in 2005, Kay has been active in online grief forums for nearly two decades. She also facilitates the in-person grief support group she started in her community. Here she shares some of the suggestions she has found to be useful in navigating her own grief journey:

Understanding and Managing Grief, April 10 - April 23, 2016

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream:

On guilt: Helpful vs. Harmful Thoughts, http://j.mp/1rqyHBl « Open to Hope

On asking why? A Terrible Saturday Morning, http://j.mp/1SBOJUF « Open to Hope

I Still Grieve my Father's Silence, http://j.mp/1T3XReU « Open to Hope

Understanding and Managing Grief, November 8 - November 14, 2015

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

Talking to Kids about the Paris Attacks, http://j.mp/1MIvwfc « What's Your Grief?

Grief and Shame: An Unacceptable Combination, http://j.mp/1LdIuvV « The Adversity Within

Researchers call for hospitals to establish bereavement programs for families of deceased patients, http://j.mp/1HLDcI2 « Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Voices of Experience: Looking Back

Jim Gorman

By Anne M. Gorman

The only time you should ever look back is to see how far you've come.  ~ Unknown

Anne Gorman and her beloved Jim were married for 40 years until his death on May 25, 2012 from Alzheimer’s disease. With the help of their Hospice of the Valley team in Phoenix, Arizona and the private nurse they hired, they were able to prepare ~ as best as one can in such circumstances ~ for the end of his life, and to fulfill his wish to die at home. Anne decided to mark the 29-month anniversary of Jim’s death by taking a careful look back at her own grief journey: remembering where she was in the beginning, noticing how far she’s come, and pondering what she has learned in the more than two years since her beloved died. She agreed to share her insights here, with the hope that the lessons she has learned will inspire others as they find their own way through grief.

Understanding and Managing Grief, October 19 - October 25, 2014

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

Insightful: Grieving Without God, http://j.mp/ZRbFFo « Alive in Memory

The Grief Journey-What To Pack, http://j.mp/1zpNSww « The Grief Toolbox

Child’s Eye View of Death: The Power of Picture Books to Explain, http://j.mp/1wa3Bxj « The Guardian

Understanding and Managing Grief, March 2 - March 8, 2014

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

Grief in the Time of Facebook, http://j.mp/MUHZ3o « HuffPost Women

Grief Healing Blog included! Coping With Loss: 115 Helpful Websites on Grief and Bereavement, http://j.mp/1hQ44vt « MastersInCounseling.org

When I Was Your Favorite Birthday Gift, http://bit.ly/1fEB4YX « Elaine Mansfield

Understanding and Managing Grief, January 12 - January 18, 2014

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

The Irony and Inconsistency of Grief, http://j.mp/1hBhmeS « Journeys Through Grief Newsletter Blog

Offering kindness through the breath: finding some ease in grief, http://j.mp/19CygJG « Refuge in Grief

"Mindfulness and Grief: The Transformative Power of Now" has been accepted for ADEC Annual Conference! bit.ly/adec2014 « Mindfulness and Grief

Recognizing Your Own Progress through Grief

[Updated May 28, 2023]

The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. ~ Lao Tzu

We often speak of grief as a journey ~ but as you go from one day to the next, how do you know you're moving forward  ~ much less where you're going ~ and how will you know when you've reached your destination?

Change isn't always obvious and dramatic; grieving is a process that takes place over time. The grief experience is different for everyone; it doesn't happen all at once or at the same rate of speed. Unless you're aware of the clues to healing and their significance, your progress through grief may be so subtle and so gradual that you will not notice it at all.