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How The Compassionate Friends Can Help You

Posted on September 6, 2015 - by Alan Pedersen

The Executive Director of The Compassionate Friends, Alan Pedersen, talks with Dr. Gloria Horsley about the Association for Death Education and Counseling (ADEC) conference in Chicago, Illinois. Both Dr. Gloria Horsley and her daughter, Dr. Heidi Horsley, will be presenting at the conference along with an impressive roster of other experts in the field of loss and grieving. With over 168 different titles of workshops, Pedersen says, “I don’t think there’s a better collection of information in the world” than what can be found at the annual ADEC conferences. If you’ve lost a loved one or are interested in getting […]

Broken Gift: Dealing With the Death of a Mentally Ill Child

Posted on September 5, 2015 - by Jill Smoot

God gave us a gift. A son. Firstborn boy. In fear and trembling, we held him in our arms, to be loved, nurtured, to laugh and to cry with. Amazing. And the gift from God grew, gave joy, but also pain we could not comprehend. Why would this gift become broken? This is my story, but perhaps the story for all who love those who are mentally unstable. Our journey began with our oldest son, Aaron. We never envisioned the grief we would someday endure and are still dealing with in his untimely death in 2011. A gift, yet unforeseen […]

Reverend Gregory Person: Where is God After Loss?

Posted on September 5, 2015 - by Gloria Horsley

Hospice chaplain and minister Reverend Gregory Person talks to Dr. Gloria Horsley about where God is after a loss. The two connected at the 2015 Association for Death Education and Counseling conference, and the Reverend says that it’s tempting to think God is gone or has forgotten you when facing such a major loss—however, reminding yourself that God is always there can be a great source of comfort and healing. As a Christian and firm believer in Jesus Christ, the Reverend says one of his favorite stories to share with grievers is that of Jesus hanging on the cross. “My […]

Jesse Roberts: Child Grief

Posted on September 4, 2015 - by Gloria Horsley

The author of Katie the Ladybug: Explaining Emotions of Grief to a Child, Jesse Roberts, discusses his own losses with Dr. Gloria Horsley at the 2015 Association for Death Education and Counseling conference. He helps children embrace honesty when talking about death, and points out that sensitive information can and should be concretely shared. Roberts lost both of his parents, and wrote the book as a creative way to explain grief. He was four when he lost his mother, and years later found there was little material out there to help adults talk about grief with a child. Whether it’s […]

Talking with Children About Grief

Posted on September 4, 2015 - by Linda Goldman

Linda Goldman discusses how to talk to children about grief with Dr. Gloria Horsley at the 2015 Association for Death Education and Counseling conference. Goldman authored Great Answers to Difficult Questions about Death for parents, and a children’s book called Children Also Grieve. As an expert in grieving and children, Goldman says the books are important for parents and professionals alike. How do you answer children’s questions? The reality is that a child’s question is a mirror to their soul and inner self. For example, one child asked, “What do you think heaven is?” By asking the same question back, […]

Daniel Shemwell: Stigma After Loss

Posted on September 3, 2015 - by Gloria Horsley

Together with Daniel Shemwell, Dr. Gloria Horsley discusses stigma surrounding some deaths. It exists on a continuum, explains Shemwell who’s currently a graduate student at Purdue University. It can occur in many ways, from socially avoiding the topic and ignoring it to outwardly and overtly shunning a person who’s going through a loss. Shemwell mentions a favorite book, The Reminder of Death, where the small reminders of death are seen as a trigger for a stigma. These triggers are avoided because they can remind people of death, and it’s important to note that triggers can be a person, too. An […]

Art Therapy Can Help in Healing from Grief

Posted on September 3, 2015 - by Nancy Gershman, LMSW

Artist and photographer Nancy Gershman, of Art for Your Sake, joins Dr. Gloria Horsley at the 2015 Association for Death Education and Counseling conference to talk about art therapy as part of the grieving process. Gershman is a friend of The Open to Hope foundation and specializes in working with those who have lost a loved one and want to explore their grief journey using an artistic lens. She calls herself a “memory artist” and the moment she enters a room that hosts memories of a loved one, she can start picking out aspects that would make for a good […]

Anne M. Carson: Writing Poems about Death of Beloved

Posted on September 2, 2015 - by Gloria Horsley

Dr. Gloria Horsley interviews Anne M. Carson, a poet from Australia, at the 2015 Association for Death Education and Counseling conference. Carson lost her husband, which is what directed her latest work. However, she was a poet before this loss. In Australia, it’s a ten year apprenticeship to release a book of poetry, which Carson had already completed before her husband’s death. Her latest work, which she reads to Dr. Horsley, focuses on bereavement, her husband’s illness, and the fact that Western societies aren’t very “good” at grieving. Carson’s book of poetry, Removing the Kimono, features a middle section dedicated […]

Forgiveness in Grief

Posted on September 2, 2015 - by Maria Kubitz

I visited my 95-year old grandmother recently. She lives over 300 miles from me, so I don’t get to see her as often as I’d like. As we sat catching up, she mentioned that she had been having more and more thoughts about times earlier in life when, in her words, she did things that “were not very nice”. The example she gave me was when, as a frustrated young mother, she spanked my father out of anger during potty training that wasn’t going too smoothly. Recalling the memory brought her to tears. Knowing my father was coming to stay […]

Lara Krawchuk: Grieving for Dad

Posted on September 1, 2015 - by Gloria Horsley

Dr. Gloria Horsley discusses grieving for dad with Lara Krawchuk, a clinical social worker in Pennsylvania. She lost her father, paternal grandmother, and was handling becoming a new mother all at once. As a specialist in oncology therapy and an adjunct professor in the grief and loss field, Krawchuk is a strong believer in discovering meaning in grief. She points out that her father died too young and simply at the wrong time. Having two children is difficult enough without losing a grandparent, but she realized she saw hope in her children’s faces every day. Today, she knows her father […]