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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 7,000 articles written by our Open to Hope authors.

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Healing a Broken Heart After A Child-Loss

Posted on June 1, 2021 - by Linda Zelik

Although each person’s journey after a child-loss is unique, I hope to make yours a little less painful by sharing the following suggestions that helped me in those early devastating years as I was healing a broken heart. Therapists Can Help With Healing a Broken Heart Don’t be hesitant or embarrassed to pursue a professional counselor. Seeing a good therapist can be helpful for the entire family. I encourage any bereaved parent or sibling to consider this. My medical doctor diagnosed me with “complicated grief disorder.” This means that the painful emotions after a loss are so severe that the […]

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How To Tame the Grief Monster

Posted on June 1, 2021 - by Linda Zelik

Taming the Grief Monster Having been a bereaved mother for over ten years years, I am now able look back and see how I was able to get from, “I don’t think I can survive this all-consuming pain” to “I will always love and miss my son, but the memories and joy of having him for 24 years now outweigh the pain of losing him.” Trust me, you too can tame the grief monster. Traversing through profound grief after losing a child will undoubtedly be the most difficult thing you will ever have to do. Unfortunately, there are no quick […]

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What to Do With a Loved One’s Possessions

Posted on May 21, 2021 - by Rachel Kodanaz

Definition of Loved One’s Possessions Until Rod’s passing, I was unaware of the true significance of a personal possession – something belonging just to you, something that doesn’t have meaning to anyone but you. The night I learned of Rod’s death, I returned home from the hospital to the house we shared as a family. The realization that he was never coming home took my breath away. In a rage of anger, I grabbed his toothbrush and threw it violently across the room. I was so angry that he had passed, leaving me with such uncertainty. Of course, his untimely […]

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The Pros and Cons of Emotional Shields

Posted on May 21, 2021 - by Greg Adams

‘Shields Up!’ What if the emotional shields we use to protect ourselves from pain get stuck in the upright position? What happens then? Can we get them unstuck? Is lowering our shields even a good idea? In the popular TV and movie series, Star Trek, from the 1960s to today, one of the consistent features in the starships used to travel the vastness of space is that they have invisible shields. When a starship is under attack, the captain orders, “Shields up!” to protect both ship and crew. The shields are not perfect protection, however, and part of the drama […]

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Music Can Help Us Grieve

Posted on May 2, 2021 - by Judy Lipson

Music is Healing and Meaningful Music has always enriched my life, shared with my beloved sisters, Margie and Jane. As girls, we loved attending Broadway musicals. We listened to the recordings beforehand and sang the songs in our head as the actors performed on stage. Some of our favorites included The Sound of Music, Funny Girl, and Fiddler on the Roof. Now, this same music helps me grieve. I realize that because, when I moved to downtown Boston, my collection of old records left in the basement for nineteen years was intact, along with my sisters’ records. I was astounded […]

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Practice Self-Compassion When Grieving

Posted on May 1, 2021 - by Judy Lipson

Why is grief still such an uncomfortable word for so many? It is a conversation that makes some people cringe. They do not have the tools to say, “I’m sorry, I can’t understand, please enlighten me.” I hope that by initiating more openness and discussions, the pattern will change. My message to others is practice self-compassion when grieving. For me, the path took thirty years to mourn my beloved sisters Margie and Jane. When ready to commence, break down the walls, an entire breadth and depth of my life ensued. There will always be a hole in my heart, but […]

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Tips for Dealing with a Spouse’s Belongings

Posted on May 1, 2021 - by Peggy Bell

A difficult task to tackle after losing your spouse is dealing with the spouse’s belongings: what to keep and what to give away. It is such an emotional decision. You may have feelings of guilt and sadness that are overwhelming.  Even though they are no longer with us, you may feel that you are intruding on their privacy by going though their personal belongings. Remember grief has no timeline and neither does this task. Do not feel pressured into doing something you do not feel ready to do. If you are pressured into it by others then you may also […]

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Writing Your Grief Can Create New Life

Posted on May 1, 2021 - by Harriet Hodgson

Deb Kosmer, a bereaved parent, author, poet, health care professional, and blogger, entered a post on Facebook about the practice of writing through grief. She said letters make words, words make sentences, sentences make pages, pages make chapters, and chapters make books. I think one more line is needed: “Words create a new life.” Experience made me add this line. Four family members died in 2007, including my daughter, the mother of my twin grandchildren. Each loss was painful, but my daughter’s death was the most painful. I didn’t think I would survive. Turning to Writing Because I’m a writer, […]

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Transform Grief into Purpose

Posted on April 21, 2021 - by Claire Willis

Devoting to a Cause We’ve all heard of courageous people who after experiencing a painful loss, transform their suffering into passion, purpose, and community. The word passion derives from the Latin passus, meaning to suffer. Guided by a desire to transform grief, they devote themselves to a cause larger than themselves. A woman whose daughter was killed by a drunk driver started a group called Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). The parents of Matthew Shepherd, who was brutally murdered for being gay, became strong advocates for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning and or queer (LGBTQ) rights and helped pass a federal […]

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Discovering Lifelines While Grieving

Posted on April 20, 2021 - by Faith Wilcox

Lifelines can rescue you after the death of a loved one. I understand this firsthand. Why? Because my thirteen-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, was treated for one year for a rare pediatric bone cancer, and despite her valiant battle, she died in my arms 365 days after her diagnosis. After Elizabeth’s death, I nearly drowned in grief. My first lifeline was tossed out to me by family and friends. They held me, comforted me, brought me meals, and sometimes simply sat by my side listening to my keening cries. They drove me to appointments when I was too weak to drive, walked […]

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