Coping with Pet Loss, June 12 - June 18, 2011

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

• Touching video of hospice pets adopted through UMC ministry, http://youtu.be/5Q3namLRmjA via @nneelley

• Heartwarming: Dying Man's Final Wish to be Reunited With Dog, http://bit.ly/loUUMm via @hospicepharmacy

• Lost Pets: Tips on Getting Fluffy and Fido Back Home Again, http://bit.ly/mE0AJd by @PetMD via @Vet4Pets

• Camarillo Hospice holds support group for petloss, http://bit.ly/l6BYMq via @hospice_news 

Teen Misses Uncle’s Visitation and Funeral

Image source: www.bigstock.com

[Reviewed and updated December 6, 2021]

A reader writes:  I am 14 years old.  I didn't get to view my uncle’s body or go to his funeral, so I’d like to know what you can do to be able to move on when you didn't get a funeral.  Any tips?

My Response: I'm so sorry to learn of the death of your uncle, and especially sorry that you were unable to be present for his visitation and funeral.  I think your question serves to remind us of the value of the funeral – not for the deceased, but as a source of comfort to the relatives and friends of the loved one who has died. The visitation and funeral can be an important first step in the mourner’s journey through grief, as it offers the first opportunity to mourn the loss of a special person in the presence of others who also are in mourning. In addition, visiting the funeral home, seeing the body, and attending and participating in the funeral service all help to confirm and reinforce the reality of the death.

Caregiving and Hospice, June 5 - June 11, 2011

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

• How pets benefit us, including how his dog Rosie helps keep him healthy, http://t.co/SQLk2EX by @DrOz via @DrMartyBecker

• Broken promises in caregiving: Embrace Your Limits, free Webinar offers help, http://t.co/yS3MVAG by @caregiving 

• Great Article! Hospice: An Underutilized Resource Obscured by Myths, http://bit.ly/kvdxRl by @Seniors4Living via @SilveradoSenior

• Not All Attention is Created Equal | The Unprepared Caregiver, http://bit.ly/kNKF61

• Opiophobia in the United States: history and video, http://bit.ly/iHs3vS via @asra_husain

Understanding and Managing Grief, June 5 - June 11, 2011

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

• Sacred Spaces for Grieving, to connect and remember, http://tinyurl.com/6hn8lb8 by @esdeer via @faymclean

• Free Father’s DayWebinar: The Many Aspects of Loss, Monday, June 13, http://t.co/nCf3f6C by @opentohope

• Death of a Sibling: Overlooked Grief, http://bit.ly/klUi2p via @hospicepharmacy

• Excellent! Helping Your Teen Understand Death and Grief, http://ow.ly/5dzV4 @KidsHealth via @Work2MakeChange

• Beautiful! Action preempts grief when assigning meaning to life's work, http://bit.ly/iyf2QL by @StoryForHealing

Coping with Pet Loss, June 5 - June 11, 2011

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

• Yes! Society is slowly acknowledging pet loss as worthy of grief, http://bit.ly/mcafKj

• The power of guilt in making the euthanasia decision for your pet, http://ow.ly/59AhO by @VetWisdom

• A message everyone needs to hear and live: Stop Fighting Dogs! http://bit.ly/if0BbZ via @petpeaceofmind

• Beautiful post and reminder to reach out for help and support in grief, http://fb.me/YXKw01OJ via @georgiaslegacy 

• Comfort for Grieving Animal Lovers, http://bit.ly/4RNOV
   
  

Support for Grieving College Students: How to Start a Local Chapter of Students of AMF

[Reviewed and updated May 21, 2024]

When faced with the added stresses and challenges of anticipatory grief and loss, college students are especially in need of campus-based grief support.  Living away from home for the first time, already struggling to establish autonomy from their families, and learning to cope with the academic and social pressures of college life, they need a safe place where they can meet with their peers, share their experiences of loss and process their grief.

The Actively Moving Forward (AMF) Support Network "is dedicated to supporting young adults grieving the illness or death of a loved one. The program accomplishes its mission by creating Actively Moving Forward Campus Chapters on college campuses nationwide that connect and empower grieving college students to support one another and participate in community service in memory of deceased loved ones, raising awareness about the needs of grieving young adults, including through the annual National College Student Grief Awareness Week, and hosting national grief support programs, such as the “We Get It” Supportive Blog, and events, such as the National Conference on College Student Grief. We also support non-collegiate young adults by creating a wealth of virtual information, programming, and community."

Students interested in getting involved in AMF by joining or starting a local chapter of Students of AMF can learn more here.

Your feedback is welcome! Please feel free to leave a comment or a question, or share a tip, a related article or a resource of your own in the Comments section below.If you’d like Grief Healing Blog updates delivered right to your inbox, you’re cordially invited to subscribe to our weekly Grief Healing Newsletter. Sign up here. 

Related:

• College Grief and Actively Moving Forward (AMF)
• In Grief: College Student Considers Dropping Out of School
• Parent Loss: Continuing Their Song

© by Marty Tousley, RN, MS, FT, BC-TMH

Caregiving and Hospice, May 29 - June 4

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

• Are dramatic changes to Medicare necessary? What if more people considered hospice care? http://ow.ly/59Rwm via @devhaddad

• In reaction to Kevorkian's Death, Restating Yes to Palliative Care, http://wp.me/p1pJHd-4s via @jfclearywisc

• Find specialists in hospice and palliative medicine on @AAHPM Web site, http://ow.ly/57XZ7 via @SalixPharma

• Computers can help patients make decisions about end-of-life care, http://lat.ms/itH3F4 via @ctffox @hospicepharmacy

• Free hospice Webinars for health care professionals, http://bit.ly/jo5WIn by @HRRV

Understanding and Managing Grief, May 29 - June 4

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

• Coping with loss and the grief that comes with it, http://ow.ly/58hLl via @ctffox

• How we talk about death, http://ow.ly/59L3Y via @LaMuscarella

• How to choose a good therapist, http://bit.ly/m1Vwra by @HopefulMJ

• Updated! Grief Bibliography (books recommended by the bereaved, for the bereaved), http://bit.ly/9J8Wa4

• Everything you need to know about Camp Widow 2011, http://bit.ly/ifnsyo

Coping with Pet Loss, May 29 - June 4

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

• New book about pet loss: The Day Tiger Rose Said Goodbye, http://bit.ly/kQWtRf by @JaneYolen via @DutchessAbroad

• Author/animal chaplain Sid Korpi talks about pet loss on Tuesday, June 7 at 8 p.m. Central, http://wp.me/pA1gP-wi via @SidKorpi

Giving Thanks on Memorial Day

When I think of Memorial Day and what it means to me, I think of how blessed I am to live in this country, where freedom still rings, even though at times we may abuse some of the freedoms we have. I think of the fallen soldiers who paid the ultimate price so that we might continue to live free. I also think of the families, friends, and loved ones of the fallen — the unsung heroes struggling to survive in the face of unspeakable loss.  Read on here >>>