Open to Hope Articles

Do you want to read stories of others who have been where you are? Are you looking for bereavement help, and advice? Look no further. We offer over 3,000 articles written by our Open to Hope authors.

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Help I am Grieving! Support for young adults ages 18-25 with Fran Solomon

February 7, 2019

Fran Solomon never imagined she’d find herself in the field of death & dying. After triggering events brought episodes of deep grief, Fran refocused her energy into a quest for healing. She is the President and founder of HealGrief the only national agency addressing the needs specific to young adults ages 18-25 through Actively Moving […]

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21-Year-Old Wonders How to Deal With Pain of Mother-Loss

January 22, 2019

Sally from California asks: I lost my mother two months back. I’m 21, the elder child and suddenly feel that my world has been turned upside down. I’m studying away from home and have blocked my grief out completely. But on the days it makes an appearance, the pain is unbearable. Will the pain ever […]

From the Ashes of my Father’s Death

January 9, 2019

(Contributing writer Emily Kil co-wrote this article with her husband based on his childhood experience.) A 9-year old boy should be playing with friends, going to school, and making lifetime memories with his parents and family. Unfortunately, as a 9-year old boy, my life took turn down a pathway that should never have to be […]

Dear Dad Letters: Father Figures

November 10, 2018

Dear Dad, It is hard living without a father to show the ways of becoming a man. Mom eventually dated some men, but they either frightened or bored me. One, a swarthy ex-boxer, bought me boxing gloves and a punching bag; but I was too scared to follow his instruction. Mom said I had an “inferiority complex, ” […]

Dear Dad Letters: Catastrophism

November 9, 2018

Dear Dad, Here is a neologism. “Catastrophism, noun. The unfounded fear that one’s life is about to meet a sudden and catastrophic end.” I have lived all my life with this underlying fear. When the phone rings, I immediately assume we are getting news that someone has died, even though I have never been told of […]

Dear Dad Letters: #5 and #6

November 8, 2018

Introduction Dear Dad is the story of my life told in the form of letters to my father, Walter Michael Jaworski, who died of a heart attack when I was five and whom, therefore, I never got to know. It is not a maudlin story of regret, but the tale of how one’s entire life — […]

Look Who is Coming to Holiday Dinner! What to Do When a Parent Remarries

October 22, 2018

When holidays come, grief can go haywire. Most everyone knows that. But what do you do if you are grieving a parent and your remaining father or mother is dating or has married someone new. How do you handle those holidays? Perspective and introspection may help you understand and cope with the loss and a […]

Saying Goodbye to Dad

September 30, 2018

I remember my last visit before Dad died in 1969. Mom called me at graduate school to tell me that he was quite ill (he’d suffered a stroke four years earlier) and had been admitted to the hospital again. She made it clear that if I came, it would be my last visit. Though incredibly […]

Greg Adams: Good Mourning

September 6, 2018

Greg Adams, LCSW, ACSW, FT is Program Coordinator for the Center for Good Mourning and Staff Bereavement Support at Arkansas Children’s Hospital. Greg is also an adjunct professor in the University of Arkansas-Little Rock Graduate School of Social Work and currently serves as Chair of the Credentialing Council for the Association of Death Education and […]