Open to Hope Articles

Articles Home

Elsa Aguilera: Grief and Culture

Posted on November 10, 2017 - by Gloria Horsley

Dr. Gloria Horsley of The Open to Hope Foundation spoke with Elsa Aguilera during the Association for Death Education and Counseling conference. Aguilera’s mother is an immigrant, and she considers herself a first generation American. She noticed some big differences in grief between both sides of her family. On her mother’s side, grieving is very quiet and polite. On her father’s side, it’s more of a celebration of life. “It’s very interesting to be raised in a culture like that,” she says. When asked which culture’s grieving process she enjoys the most, Aguilera says that (being from Texas) simply being […]

Mateo Gomez: Grief (en espanol)

Posted on November 8, 2017 - by John Rampton

John Rampton, de Open to Hope, habla con Mateo Gomez en este segmento acerca de cómo se le puede ayudar a los dolientes después de una pérdida de un ser querido. Esta entrevista esa enfocada a aquellos de cultura Hispana, ya que ellos enfrentan diferentes obstáculos en lo que es el duelo. Gomez tiene experiencia en este departamento, ya que él trabaja para Forest Lawn, una funeraria en Los Ángeles. Entre sus consejos, Gomez comparte que, “lo que recomiendo, porque los Hispanos no lo hacemos, es que busquemos ayuda.” Una de las formas en las que Gomez ayuda es montando […]

Natural Disasters Leave Grief Among the Ruins

Posted on November 5, 2017 - by Susan Berger

The havoc wrought by recent natural disasters – hurricanes in Houston and Florida, the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, wild fires in Northern California, the earthquakes in Mexico — remind me of how destructive natural disasters can be to those affected by them. Not only have many lives been lost – wives, husbands, children, parents, pets – but also homes, schools, hospitals, entire neighborhoods and communities. Think about the memories contained in all those people and places. We humans form many attachments in the course of our lives. First and foremost, we value our family members and friends. Beyond […]

Grief of a Miscarriage is Real

Posted on November 3, 2017 - by Catherine McNulty

For me, the loss of my child due to miscarriage was just as painful as the loss of my living infant. It’s a fact that 1 in 4 pregnancies end in miscarriage or loss. Miscarriage often happens early in pregnancy, so we tend to discount that the pregnancy was “real”. I assure you that the pain you feel is very real. There was a biochemical and maternal desire in me to have a child. I knew being a mother was part of my journey. When I found out I was pregnant for the first time, I was overwhelmed. At first, […]

It’s not possible that schools will make textbooks cheaper.

Posted on November 1, 2017 - by Robert Neimeyer

The simple essay writing approach which could be beneficial is making an outline, that will limit the blood supply of ideas to particular quantity of words. Listed here are helpful measures for creating a diagram to organize suggestions for your own essay. Standard article writing hints must also include the delivery of your own perform. In here you’ll find tons of useful hints about essay writing process.

Charlotte Manges: Prenatal Loss

Posted on October 29, 2017 - by Heidi Horsley

Charlotte Manges was an OB maternity nurse for 20 years, in charge of the pregnancy loss program where mothers were cared for in instances where babies did not survive. Today, she works with Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep and A Walk to Remember. Many of these mothers experienced stillborns and/or premature births. “I felt these mothers and dads were being shortchanged,” she explains. Too often, stillborns and babies who die shortly after birth are seen as specimens to be sent to a lab or are whisked away to the morgue. There were times a mother-to-be would come in […]

Grieving for a Loved One I Never Knew

Posted on October 28, 2017 - by Jennifer Stern

I must admit I find beautiful and limitless potential in the notion of grieving for loved ones that we did not have the opportunity to know. If given the choice, which we are not, of course we would choose to actually love in this life, real time, face to face. Unfortunately this is not always an option. But this truth does not have to prevent or limit us from loving or feeling loved. My father died one month before my twin brother and I were born. I did not know him. Yet, I do. I know that he was tall, handsome, […]

Dr. Anasuya Tegathesan: Grieving and the Hindu Culture

Posted on October 25, 2017 - by Gloria Horsley

Dr. Gloria Horsley spoke with Dr. Anasuya Tegathesan during the Association for Death Education and Counseling 2015 conference about the many grieving rituals in Hindu culture. Dr. Tegathesan is a Senior Lecturer at the Hope University of Malaysia, a prominent researcher and is happy to share her culture’s traditions with Open to Hope. One of the most common Hindu traditions is to add a type of leaf, similar to basil leaves, to water, then share the water amongst everyone after prayers and/or certain holidays. It’s also common during ceremonies to honor those who have passed. She explains that Indian […]

Darcy Harris: Social Justice and Grief

Posted on October 18, 2017 - by Heidi Horsley

Dr. Darcy Harris has most recently been focusing on working with issues on social justices and social messages as it relates to grieving, she tells Dr. Heidi Horsley during the Association for Death Education and Counseling 2015 conference. Working with a grief and death studies program in London, Ontario, she splits her time between this work and continuing to serve as a therapist. She’s noticed a number of recurring themes arising within her clients and students alike, such as, “Am I normal?” Many times, people in grief feel like they need to constrict and change how they appear to be […]

Nancy Gershman: Healing Through the Arts

Posted on October 16, 2017 - by Nancy Gershman, LMSW

Nancy Gershman recently spent two months in Russia, and was surprised that this “Motherland of Suffering” could have so many lessons about hope. She shared her experience with Dr. Gloria Horsley at the 2015 Association for Death Education and Counseling conference. She was teaching master’s students in a psychology program how to visualize a new memory designed to overwrite distressing memories. Students were asked to bring in photos of a pet or person who they were grieving. One sexologist had lost a horse, and was so sure he had died a dignified death because “he didn’t bother anybody.” Quietly passing […]