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Steven M. Southwick, MD, is a Professor of psychiatry, at Yale Medical School and is a world expert on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and resilience. He is the co-author of “Resilience: The Science of Mastering Life’s Greatest Challenges”
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Jeffrey Kauffman is a psychotherapist in private practice in suburban Philadelphia who specializes in the treatment of grief and trauma. His most recent publication is The Shame of Death Grief and Trauma. He is a member of the Association of Continue reading
On this show co-hosted by Alan Pedersen Tony and Darcie Sims discuss the differences in their responses to the death of their son and those of others with whom they have worked. Alan Pedersen closes the show by signing “Thanks Continue reading
Dear Abel, My wife passed away a little over a year ago. We were married for 17 years. I started dating six month after she died. After dating around for a bi,t I finally started dating someone exclusively last month. … Continue reading
The shock of major events, such as the Oklahoma tornado or the Boston bombing, can be overwhelming, even when we are miles away from the event. The anger, shock, grief we feel for our fellow humans rock our boat like … Continue reading
When unexplainable things happen, as they did in Oklahoma this week, it would be easy to be angry, or even afraid, but anger and fear come from darkness, and what we need now is light. So let’s keep holding the … Continue reading
In the past year, I’ve lost two women in my family from cancer. I’ve felt the searing loss and pain that these deaths have brought, in part because I am in remission from cancer myself. Twice. Seventeen years apart. Because … Continue reading
Dear Abel, I lost my wife three months ago after a tragic accident. This may sound crazy to most people but I feel like dating again. Is it normal for men to feel this way so soon after the death … Continue reading
Losing a parent is never easy, no matter the circumstance or what segment of time in your life the loss occurred. The grief softens, but never leaves us. When holidays roll around, it is always a painful reminder of the … Continue reading
We’re all familiar with the different stages or phases in life – childhood to youth, youth to adulthood, and so on. Those stages could never happen if there wasn’t change ~ every day. Like a flower unfolding, each stage has … Continue reading
When I was in Brussels, Belgium, recently, I found a reference to Compassionate Friends (the organization for parents who have lost a child to death) and a couple’s phone number in a magazine called The Bulletin. I called the number … Continue reading
Cemetery Discomfort I have always been uncomfortable in cemeteries ever since I can remember. My discomfort surrounding cemetery visits magnified one hundred fold after my daughter Jeannine’s death in March of 2003. Watching my daughter’s coffin being lowered into the … Continue reading
Just this morning I read a wise and timely quote from Eckhart Tolle: “As long as you make an identity for yourself out of pain, you cannot be free of it.” I’m always a bit amazed when words seem to … Continue reading
Several months after my husband died, something happened that caused me to laugh. I was surprised at how good it felt. It also surprised me when I thought about how long it had been since I had last laughed, so … Continue reading
Life is full of choices. What we don’t always understand is that happiness is a choice, too. It seems strange that being happy would be a choice, but that is one of the things I learned when I was caught … Continue reading
When I was first widowed, my overriding thought was that I couldn’t survive it, and I did not wish to. But the thought that I couldn’t go on without him was simply not true: it felt true, but it wasn’t. … Continue reading
Grief creeps into our lives in so many ways. Loved ones die, friends or family move away, children grow up and leave home, jobs change, pets die, a treasured possession becomes damaged or lost. And these are just some of … Continue reading
The bombings in Boston have left me in tears. Every time I hear the news, see the photos of those who died or were wounded, I want to curl up and block it all out. It is much the way … Continue reading
Alone after the sudden death of my 54 year-old husband, I struggled to figure out who I was and where I was headed in life. Trying to find the “Diane” within, I reconnected with hobbies of the past and at … Continue reading
When great change comes into our lives, we may feel as though we are in a foreign land. All seems strange and different somehow, and we may feel hesitant or unsure as to how to proceed. To be sure, a … Continue reading
As I read about the grieving process, I noticed many suggest we should do something nice for someone else. It’s hard to think of reaching out to another person when you feel so broken, but doing so opens our eyes … Continue reading
After you lose someone you love very much, it is only natural to think about that person in a very positive way. But sometimes we can go too far, and if we do, we end up with unrealistic memories. I … Continue reading
After an unusually, stormy, cold winter all over the nation, spring has finally arrived. The days are getting longer, the weather is getting warmer, and the flowers are now blooming. Along with nature’s beauty comes thoughts of our children who … Continue reading
Six years have passed since my daughter died from the injuries she received in a car crash. Three other family members died the same year. As I look back on my bereavement journey, I see spikes of grief – a … Continue reading
In my previous article, we talked about how, over time, loneliness can change into solitude. When we are in the throes of grief, solitude may not feel very comforting, and yet it is through solitude that we can find the … Continue reading
As Americans, we are again shocked and disturbed by the Boston Marathon bombing. It is unfathomable that such violence could be planned to disturb the annual patriots event in the city that is the very cradle of liberty. My heart … Continue reading
In the past year, I’ve lost two women in my family from cancer. I’ve felt the searing loss and pain that these deaths have brought, in part because I am in remission from cancer myself. Twice. Seventeen years apart. Because … Continue reading
I find it difficult to believe that I was 40 years old before I found out that I had a choice about how I thought and how I felt. Up until then, if “A” happened, I automatically did “B.” Yes, … Continue reading