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He Talked about His Son and I Didn’t See a Tear

Posted on September 24, 2019 - by Bob Baugher

It’s interesting how human behavior can fool us. We look at someone and think, “OK, I’ve got her all figured out” and then she does something we would have never predicted. When I was younger and would meet someone who mentioned the death of their loved one, it never dawned on me that this individual could still be experiencing some form of grief. What I saw in front of me was a person who appeared to matter-of-factly state that their loved one died and I took it literally at face value. I mean, you can’t really blame me. For example, […]

Angels, Lights, Birdies and Butterflies: Is it Really Them?

Posted on September 24, 2019 - by Nina Impala

When are loved ones leave us sometimes we will have profound dreams of them. Those dreams can be alarming or bring peace. In the early stages of grief, we want to know they made it safety to heaven. After all, it is a journey. Are you looking for signs from your loved ones? I know I did. I had so many dreams about my mom in the beginning. It will be 9 years and I so WISH to dream of her all the time because I want to SEE her. At this stage though 9 years later, I feel her […]

We Don’t Die. Our Bodies Do.

Posted on September 24, 2019 - by Bernie Siegel

As someone who has had a near death and past life experience, I know the truth about what we call death. When my wife died 18 months ago, the incredible experiences I had were not surprising to me at all. First, I have a patient who is a mystic and she called after my wife died to tell me a woman who was an opera singer contacted her to tell her Bobbie was fine and back with her family. My wife’s mother was an opera singer. While in bed one night, I heard my wife’s voice and sat up and […]

Something Beautiful Remains

Posted on September 24, 2019 - by Elaine Voci

“Tears will leave no stains, time will ease the pain, For every life that fades, something beautiful remains.” The sunlit formal room, filled with attentive mourners and the family of the deceased, was utterly quiet as I began to read the closing poem, Something Beautiful Remains (author unknown) chosen for the Celebration of Life I had just officiated. The words resonated in my own heart as I spoke them, and I felt compassion well up in my eyes for the heartache of those who had gathered to celebrate the life of their loved one who was a wife, a mom, […]

How Grief and Addiction are Related

Posted on September 24, 2019 - by Ralph Macey

“Every man casts a shadow; not his body only, but his imperfectly mingled spirit. This is his grief. Let him turn which way he will, it falls opposite to the sun; short at noon, long at eve. Did you never see it? “ – Henry David Thoreau If we are going to talk about grief and addiction, the simple fact is that they are truly connected. In many cases, severe grief triggers addiction in us. If the former one increases with time, the latter one will also become deep. Before we understand how grief can trigger addiction, we must understand […]

A Statistical Look at Grief: Markers on a Lonely Journey

Posted on September 24, 2019 - by Tracey Wallace

Throw the stages of grief out the window. They simply can’t be trusted. If you are like me, or most people who are grieving in any way shape or form, the stages of grief aren’t’ stages at all. They can happen all at once, and whenever they want –– from the moment the loss happens to 10 or 50 years later. The reality is that loss is cyclical. The grief of it never goes away –– it’s just that in the “new normal” you find in which grief will always live, so too lives joy and love and passion. Of […]

From Feeling to Filling the Empty Nest

Posted on September 24, 2019 - by Annah Elizabeth

Those late summer and early fall months are filled with all things back-to-school shopping, which can also usher in a barrage of emotions for children and adults alike. It is a time that incites growth and change, independence and uncertainty, excitement and anxiety, and pride and worry, to name a few. It is not uncommon for people of all ages to feel a little lost, wondering where and how they are going to fit in in their new roles and environments, and feeling a little unsteady as they transition into a new Life Phase. As parents, our lives are often […]

Own Your Grief

Posted on September 19, 2019 - by Catherine McNulty

An excerpt from Catherine McNulty’s book, The Gifts of Grief. “Grief is not something to survive or a disease to cure. It is a universal human emotion and an opportunity to deepen self-awareness, re-evaluate what’s truly important, and take action to bring meaning into your life.” Although grief is an emotion everyone goes through, each one of us goes through it in a different way. It seems like we all think that grief is something that we can escape; until it happens to us. We’re told by the books that we read and advice that we get from others, that […]

Grief Coaches and Therapist Can Help

Posted on September 12, 2019 - by Catherine McNulty

An excerpt from Catherine McNulty’s book, The Gifts of Grief. “You are not alone.” The intensity of the grief we experience is a result of the love and connection we have with someone else. Understanding that connection and how it relates to who we are is what matters. This is best done with a personal coach or guide. Whether a death occurred in your life recently, or you’ve been holding on to grief for a long time, I encourage you to go out and hire a Grief Coach. Finding a way to connect to someone who can help you can […]

Can You Grieve for a Place?

Posted on September 6, 2019 - by Harriet Hodgson

My husband and I are moving in a month. He is paraplegic. I’m recovering from open heart surgery and have a pig valve in my heart. These factors made us decide to move to a place with support services. We are leaving our wheelchair-friendly town home and moving to a senior living community. Though the decision is the right one, when I look around our town home I feel sad. I grieve for a lost lifestyle. Our apartment is in the independent living part of the building, yet we won’t be totally independent. Wherever we go, we will be surrounded […]