Open to Hope Articles

Articles Home

Staying Open to Signs of Continued Love

Posted on May 29, 2016 - by Karla Wheeler

Karla Wheeler and her daughter, Jenny Wheeler, share with the Association for Death Education and Counseling (ADEC) their story of loss and healing. How can you stay connected with a loved one who has died? Jenny’s grandparents/Karla’s parents have both passed away. Additionally, Karla’s husband and Jenny’s father died a few years ago. The mother-daughter team has gone on to write several articles and books on the subject of grief, and they are now in-demand speakers around the country. They founded Quality of Life Publishing to help publish and spread stories of loss to readers around the world. A sign […]

Dianne Gray: When a Child is Diagnosed with a Life Limiting Illness

Posted on May 28, 2016 - by admin

The president of Hospice and Healthcare Communications, Dianne Gray, speaks with the Association for Death Education and Counseling (ADEC) about the process of having a child that’s diagnosed with a life-limiting illness. Her condolences come first. There was a time when Gray herself was the parent of such a child. “Get ready for the ride of your life,” she says. There will never be a time again when life seems limitless. There won’t be birthday cakes and candles where everyone looks forward to the future with eager anticipation. Every day is a gift now, and the entire family will get […]

Participants Needed for Study on Physician Behavior After a Loss

Posted on May 27, 2016 - by admin

We are writing to invite you to participate in a study about your loss and the experiences you may have had in contacts with a physician following the loss. We are inviting people bereaved from all causes of death. At this point, we don’t know much about the experience that bereaved individuals have in their contacts with physicians after the loss. It is our hope that your participation in this study will help us to better understand the experiences that people have in contacts with physicians after losing a loved one. We intend to use the results to inform recommendations […]

Hope After the Loss of a Spouse

Posted on May 27, 2016 - by Laurel D. Rund

Artist, poet, and writer Laurel Diane Rund talks about finding hope once again after losing a spouse. Losing her husband took her on a journey to sorrow and personal transformation. According to a Chinese proverb, birds sing because they have a song—not an answer. Rund didn’t have any answers or know how to grieve. However, she knew intuitively that she had a song inside her. Overwhelmed with sadness, she wasn’t an “us” anymore after 42 years with her husband. She felt invisible, alone, and unattached. Death was a tough and unexpected teacher. If not now, when? That was a question […]

Is Visiting a Gravesite a Help?

Posted on May 26, 2016 - by Harriet Hodgson

We don’t visit our daughter’s grave. While this is a shocking statement for some, others understand our feelings. Whether or not to visit a gravesite is a personal decision, based on religious and spiritual beliefs, relationship with the deceased, the grief work that has been done, current feelings, and plans for the future. The comfort derived from a visit is another factor. On the first anniversary of our daughter’s death my husband and I, family members, and a few of her friends, gathered at her gravesite. I passed out a list of my daughter’s values—practices that she lived by […]

You’ve Got a Friend: Spending Time with Fellow Grievers

Posted on May 25, 2016 - by Sue Trace Lawrence

As a psychologist, I have learned how important the human need to belong and feel appreciated is to mental health. But what happens when we lose an important relationship, especially during childhood? How does the death of a close loved one affect a little one, when personality and self-esteem are still in the formative stages? What are the consequences of having an important person ripped out of one’s life? These are the questions that have plagued me for a long time, ever since I have been aware of the effects on my own psyche of losing a brother during my […]

Learning to Accept Life’s Multiple Truths

Posted on May 25, 2016 - by Charles W. Sidoti

One of my duties as a hospital chaplain is to plan and conduct memorial services at the hospital when an employee dies. This may happen several times a year. I usually try to arrange for someone to sing a reflective song as part of the service. There are several employees that sing in church choirs, and some who even sing professionally and are willing to share their talent at these special gatherings. I recall when Bernard, who runs the information desk in the main lobby, sang a song called “Life Is Hard But God Is Good.” The song was a […]

Therese Wenner: Cranial Sacral

Posted on May 24, 2016 - by Gloria Horsley

If you haven’t heard of cranial sacral work before, you’re not alone. Dr. Gloria Horsley interviews Therese Wenner at the National Alliance for Grieving Children conference, and discusses the benefits of this form of therapy. Based in Olympia, Washington, Wenner has a private practice that focuses on cranial sacral therapy. For those in grief, this can be very calming to your entire system. Many people need a lot of calming, but may not know where to turn. This is a form of therapy that deals with the core system in your body—the central nervous system, but accessed in a gentle […]

Love, Separation, and the ‘Dance Full of Mystery’

Posted on May 23, 2016 - by Thomas Attig

The author of How We Grieve: Relearning the World, Dr. Tom Attig, talks about love and separation with the Open to Hope Foundation. As a philosopher, Dr. Attig takes a unique approach to teaching and talking about grief. Loving someone is a dance full of mystery, he explains. With every dance partner, you can feel the precariousness of the relationship. This can be with a parent, child, partner, or even a pet. The death of their soul eludes you. The movements of each dance goes beyond any perceived imperfections. Whether a loss is sudden or expected, what can you do […]

Years of Love: Measuring a Life After a Loss

Posted on May 22, 2016 - by Judy Lipson

Years astound me. Forever etched in my mind a calculation of time, reminders, anniversaries, dates, and birthdays. I still find it hard to believe August 1, 2015, marked the 25th anniversary we lost my beloved sister Margie. To celebrate my 25th birthday in October 1981 marked the last time I saw my beloved sister Jane who passed away November 7, 1981. I am 59 — longer than the sum total both my sisters lived; Jane passed away at 22 and Margie 35. My daughters are now 29 and 30. Where do the years go? At times so quickly and others […]