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Articles:

Are You Afraid to Cry? The Hidden Power of Tears

Do you have the courage to cry? In my experience, a vast majority of people I encounter seem to suppress their tears because our culture deems crying in public as unacceptable.? I wonder how it is that if you and I are to fully encourage success in life that we can also discourage our emotional response to that life.? It seems to me that inhibiting tears somehow means that you?re strong and capable; unaffected by and disconnected from the influence of others.? What I’m suggesting is that to detach from others is to be invulnerable to one?s self; to be […]

Grieving Infant Loss

Dear Ruthanne, ? I am so very sorry about the loss of your son Cayden.?? Gloria Horsley asked if I could recommend anything that might help you in finding some support.? After the loss of our son Nicholas 10 years ago I relied heavily on reading everything I could regarding infant loss and grief in general and well as talking to others with infant losses as well.? There are several web sites that have numerous poems, articles, links, etc.? Most of them have chat room capabilities for people who have lost a baby.? The compassionate Friends has an infant loss […]

Kudos From Kathy

I have been catching up on some of your past shows, and what you and Heidi are doing is just so fantastic – you have done a wonderful, wonderful thing for all us grievers…I just love you to pieces, Gloria!? Thank you!? Cathy Seehuetter a past guest on Healing the Grieving Heart

Poem: Wildflowers For Trevor

I never thought Texas bluebonnets would make me cry They always were the signs of the beginnings of spring Late March, early April and your birthday would be coming April 5th, a time of anticipation and joy But today, I spotted them along the roadside and they made me cry I thought of all the photos you took of them In masses of blue and the pinks and oranges of Indian Paintbrushes So beautiful, you loved those photos you would sell Texas Bluebonnets lifted everyone’s spirits Signaling the start of our Texas spring Your photos capturing the essence of a […]

Check Out The Amelia Center in Birmingham

Heidi and I are very pleased that The Amelia Center in Birmingham, Al, that serves as a place of hope for grieving children, parents and families, has chosen to mention “Healing the Grieving Heart”? on their web page www.ameliacenter.org as a “New Resource”.? They mention that show archives can be found on The Compassionate Friends Website and that we have more than fifty archived shows.? We thank the Amelia center and wish them well in their upcoming 2007 Spring Bereavement workshop featuring as the main speaker Dr. Robert Neimeyer.? Check it out.? Heidi and I hope to attend.? Gloria

How do I know if I have finished the grieving?

Note:?below you will find a “real-life” email exchange that?be helpful to many, many of you.??The correspondence is exactly as it was sent and received.??? Hi dr’s gloria and heidi, i’m?george?from new jersey and i listen to your radio show archives, i find them very interesting and helpful. i lost both parent’s almost 4 years ago, mom lost her fight to breast cancer in september 2003, and my dad died 25 days later in october 2003. it was obviously very devestating, and i was the one (out of 5 kids) who lived closest to my parents and was able to devote […]

“Space Between Breaths:” A documentary of hope after great losses

Dear Fellow Travelers, Thought you might like a ?sneak preview? of ?Space Between Breaths.?? It is truly a documentary of hope after great losses.? Luther and Rosemary Smith have produced a documentary that explains grief from all aspects and then shows us how, like the phoenix, have come out of the ashes of loss to a place called ?hope.??? That space between breaths is where we all are now.? Where do we go from here?? The documentary will show where other parents have been and are ?going.? There are still tickets available for the premiere.? You may order tickets for […]

About Thursday’s Healing the Grieving Heart

Dear Listeners to Healing The Grieving Heart, ? Heidi and I and Voice America would like to apologize for the mix-up on the Thursday’s show.? We advertised the show as Eric Hipple and the engineers put up a pre-record of Bud Welch that was scheduled to be played in July.? The error was further compounded when Eric Hipple was played for the last fifteen minutes.? We appreciate you our listening audience and know you count on us to deliver what we advertise.? The Eric Hipple show will be played during the week on www.healthvoiceamerica.com and will then be archived on […]

Dr. Heidi Speaks About the Divorce Rate among Bereaved Parents

I was glad to see that Wayne Loder cited several studies done on behalf of Compassionate Friends showing that the divorce rate among bereaved parents is 12%-16%, far below the national average. Further, I agree with my mom (Dr. Gloria) that grieving parents, do not need to be told that their marriage cannot survive a profound loss. However, I also think it is important to present the other side of this discussion, and to say to those of you that are divorced or are in the process of getting divorced, that in most cases this will not destroy or ruin […]

Does God answer prayer? ASU research says ‘yes’

Does God or some other type of transcendent entity answer prayer? The answer, according to a new Arizona State University study published in the March journal Research on Social Work Practice, is “yes.” ?David R. Hodge, an assistant professor of social work in the College of Human Services at Arizona State University , conducted a comprehensive analysis of 17 major studies on the effects of intercessory prayer ? or prayer that is offered for the benefit of another person ? among people with psychological or medical problems. He found a positive effect.

Open to Hope is an online community offering inspirational stories of loss, hope and recovery. We believe hope is the bridge between loss and recovery.