The Good Grief Club | Featured Books
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Monica Novak’s book, The Good Grief Club, is available on Amazon.com.
Author Archives: Monica Novak
Books by Monica Novak
The Good Grief Club
By Monica Novak Publish Date: February 01, 2008
Formats: kindle edition
Amazon: Amazon
Written by a bereaved mother, The Good Grief Club is the true story of seven women who discover that their new friendships … More
Posts by Monica Novak
Remembering Your Baby on All Souls Day | Post
By Monica Novak – In the Christian traditions, churches all over the world set aside a day of celebrating and remembering our loved ones who have died. Depending on the particular denomination, this day is often referred to as All … Continue reading
First Halloween | Post
By Beth Seyda – I usually love Halloween, seeing all the little kids in their cute costumes struggling to hold up their trick or treat bags and trying to say “trick or treat”. But that first Halloween was only a … Continue reading
Floating Downstream: What Loss Has Taught Me | Post
During summer breaks, my 12-week reprieve from the regimented early-morning school schedule, my three girls and I love to sleep in and lounge around in our pajamas all morning (okay, they lounge while I do dishes and laundry and try … Continue reading
News of Fathering Dead Infant Stirs Up Grief Thirty Years Later | Post
By Monica Novak – A reader (I’ll call her Lori) wrote in one day to say that her husband had been contacted by a woman he had dated nearly 30 years earlier. She told him she had broken up with … Continue reading
October: Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month | Post
In 1988, when President Ronald Reagan declared October to be Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month, I was still in college, not yet married, and motherhood was a distant point in my future. The proclamation, even if I had heard … Continue reading
Keeping and Sharing Memories of Our Babies | Post
When my friend Dawn was pregnant with triplets, due the following June, her husband Andy wanted to surprise her with a special piece of jewelry for Christmas. He had no idea what to get, so the sales lady helped him … Continue reading
Trying Something New Brings Joy and Life to the Bereaved | Post
By Barbara A. Glanz – The following is an excerpt from Barbara’s book What Can I Do? Ideas to Help Those Who Have Experienced Loss: One of the ways we can help people to move on with their lives is … Continue reading
The First Support Group Meeting | Post
By Monica Novak – When our daughter Miranda was stillborn 14 years ago, despite the love and support from family and friends, my husband Al and I often felt a strange aloneness, as if we were existing in another world … Continue reading
Back to School Time Can Be Difficult | Post
By Monica Novak – It was July and summer was still in full-swing when the seasonal patio furniture began to quietly disappear from local stores. I knew what was coming, but said nothing. Before long, the signs and bins began … Continue reading
Follow Your Heart When You Have a Chance to Comfort Bereaved | Post
I was having breakfast with my friend Wendy on a recent Sunday morning when she told me this story. On her way out of church that morning, she saw an older woman sitting in the pew crying. It’s a large … Continue reading
Company Prepares to Welcome Employee Back After Stillbirth | Post
I received a call one day from Pat, the Share support group facilitator and perinatal bereavement coordinator at the local hospital, telling me that she and I had been invited to speak to one of the departments at a nearby … Continue reading
Helping a Child After a Loss | Post
By Cathy R. Blanford, M.Ed. – Begin by taking care of yourself. If you do not have someone to be there for you, you may have difficulty being there for a child who needs you. Include children in what is … Continue reading
Floating Downstream | Post
By Monica Novak – When I began writing this weekly column, A Mother’s Thoughts, my intention was to post something new once a week. Shouldn’t be too difficult, doesn’t have to be long and drawn-out. I’ll just add it to … Continue reading
The Emotional Impact of Stillbirth in a Multiple Pregnancy | Post
By Jean Kollantai – The experience of carrying two, loving two, getting ready to totally care for two lively babies at once was something I never could have imagined until it happened to me…and so was the emotional impact of … Continue reading
A Single White Rose | Post
By Barbara A. Glanz – In 1971 I faced the most difficult experience of my life, one which has changed me forever. I had grown up in a small town in Iowa where families were the center of our lives. … Continue reading
Signs of Hope | Post
By Monica Novak – When our daughter Miranda was stillborn, the word “hope” took on new meaning for me. Used often to describe the feeling that what you want in the future will happen, for example healing and moving beyond … Continue reading
Holding On and Letting Go | Post
By Beth Seyda – After my infant son, Dylan, died I started jotting down various things and scenes I recalled from our experience. I wanted to write about these memories not only to capture the details of Dylan’s life and … Continue reading
Corporate Department Takes Special Care to Welcome Back Bereaved Mom Co-Worker | Post
By Monica Novak – I received a call one day from Pat, the Share support group facilitator and perinatal bereavement coordinator at the local hospital, telling me that she and I had been invited to speak to one of the … Continue reading
Woman Grieves Over Death of a Baby 35 Years Ago | Post
From Open to Hope: Ask The Authors, December 10, 2008 Tammy writes in with a question: My friend who is 52 is grieving over a baby she lost when she was 17. She has 2 other children, both adults now. … Continue reading
‘Grief is an Illness’ and Other Myths Surrounding Loss | Post
By David Daniels, M.D. – Destructive myths abound concerning the loss and grief process. First, contrary to some views, there is no one “right” way to die or grieve; our personality type makes a difference. Some of us go in … Continue reading
Growing Together | Post
By Chuck and Cathi Lammert – Over the many years of working with bereaved parents, my husband, Chuck and I have had many questions asked of us about coping and growing together as a couple after the loss of one’s … Continue reading
Baby Hoax Stemmed From Real-Life Grief and Loss | Post
By Monica Novak – As I walked into the house on a Friday morning, my husband, Al, handed me the front page of the Chicago Tribune. ”I think you should read this,” he said. The headline story read, “Blogger’s baby … Continue reading
A Stillborn Baby and the Fathers in Her Life | Post
By Monica Novak – When I was a child, I prided myself on making the best homemade cards to show my parents how important they were to me. Father’s Day was probably the Big Kahuna of card-making for me because … Continue reading
Kim McLean and Paula Prime: Finding Peace and Light After Loss | Post
From Healing the Grieving Heart radio, May 14, 2009 Listen to radio show archive: MP3 Link First Guest: Kim McLean is a mainstream artist whose music is used often for comfort and hope of the bereaved. Although that was not … Continue reading