Heidi Horsley

Dr. Heidi Horsley is a licensed psychologist, social worker, and bereaved sibling. She co-hosts the award-winning weekly cable television show and podcast, Open to Hope. Dr. Heidi is an Adjunct Professor at Columbia University, and an award-winning author, who has co-authored eight books, and serves on the United Nations Global Mental Health Task Force. She also serves on the Advisory Boards for the Tragedy Assistance Program, the Elisabeth Kubler-Ross Foundation, and Peace of Mind Afghanistan. She served on the National Board of Directors for The Compassionate Friends, and for 10 yrs. worked on a Columbia University research study looking at traumatic loss over time in families who lost a firefighter in the World Trade Center.

Articles:

September 11th – 16 Years of Grief

Sixteen years ago, our resilience as a country was tested when nearly 3,000 people were killed in the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks. We have come a long way since then, and I have watched as NYC has rebuilt, and bereaved families have once again found hope. I was honored to spend ten years with 9/11 firefighter families, taking the grief journey with them. Their grief came in waves, often knocking them down when they least expected it. But these families kept going, and they leaned on, and supported other 9/11 families, much as TAPS families do. It’s been 16 years, […]

Death and Dying: Interview with Brian Barry MA

At the annual ADEC (Association of Death Education and Counseling), I spoke with Brian Barry, who teaches death and dying at RIT in Rochester. Brian began to explore the field of death and dying after the passing of his mother, and he has been doing it for the past 35 years. When Barry’s mother passed away, he started to discover things about death and dying that he hadn’t noticed before. He goes into more detail about this in the video below. Here are some key highlights from the video: In a family, people have different roles which are difficult to […]

Antonio Sausys: Healing the Body, Mind and Spirit

During the 2015 Association for Death Education and Counseling conference, Dr. Heidi Horsley spoke with Antonio Sausys from Uruguay. Sausys operates a program that integrates yoga techniques and therapies that combine the mind, body and spirit “in order to help grievers go through the difficult process.” Contrary to popular belief, grief is not purely emotional—or even largely emotional at times. “It has so many important and massive involvements of the body,” he explains. Helping people sleep better, return to normalized eating habits and handle physical pain that often gathers in the chest area after a loss is Sausys’ specialty. The […]

Tina Barrett: Montana Grief Center Offers Outdoor Support for Kids and Teens

A counselor at the Tamarack Grief Resource Center, Dr. Tina Barrett attended the 2015TANA Association of Death Education and Counseling conference where she spoke with the Executive Director of Open to Hope, Dr. Heidi Horsley. Barret’s goal is to “stabilize kids, adults and communities following loss” in the Missoula, Montana area. Offering both support programs and education programs, these programs are earmarked for kids and teens as well as schools that may need help handling grieving students after a loss. “We specialize in grief camps and retreats,” she shares, but even the non-camp groups and programs try to get attendees […]

Galen Goben: Faith and Healing After a Death

The Grief Support Coordinator for Forest Lawn, Galen Goben, spoke with Dr. Heidi Horsley of the Open to Hope Foundation during the 2015 Association for Death Education and Counseling conference about having faith after a death. Forest Lawn is an organization in California that helps people plan ahead for death, including full funeral, crematorium and cemetery services. He’s also an ordained minister of the Christian Church of the Disciples of Christ and says that one of the best ways to heal after a loss is learning how to “live with the pain.” However, you also have to learn that there […]

Mary Jane Gandour: Sibling Loss

Recently retired clinical psychologist Mary Jane Gandour spoke with Dr. Heidi Horsley at the 2015 Association of Death Education and Counseling conference. Currently, Dr. Gandour is writing a memoir about the grief process. “My daughter Amy died at the age of 14” of leukemia, and that’s just one of many family deaths in the past recent years for Gandour’s family. “She had been diagnosed when she was six, so she managed to live over eight years.” Dr. Gandour’s other daughter, Molly, recently debuted a documentary on the family’s grief, which Dr. Horsley commends as very courageous. “Molly appeared to be […]

Doneley Meris: Diversity and Grief

A psychotherapist in New York City, Doneley Meris’ mother was a nurse and he was exposed to death and dying from a very young age. “I love what I do,” he tells Dr. Heidi Horsley during the Association for Death Education and Counseling 2015 conference. Working in the field of death and grieving for 34 years, Meris has a private practice in Tribeca and runs the HIV Arts Network which serves people living with HIV/AIDs, providing support group services. Dr. Horsley asks Meris whether, as a Filipino American, there are big cultural differences in how death is approached. Meris notes […]

Creating a Legacy Video

Documentary photographer Todd Hochberg talks about Moments Held, Legacy Work, which is an organization that connects families with documentarians like himself to capture the most poignant moments of life. Hochberg’s legacy videos are a popular option when a family knows that a loved one will pass soon, often from a terminal illness. For all the photos we take, sometimes on a daily basis, legacy photos are different. They capture the sheer joy of moments and showcase your loved one in their truest form. For Hochberg, it’s a way to blend his passions and skills with a means of service. Legacy […]

David Meagher: Children and Pet Loss

How can you help children address pet loss? David Meagher, a professor emeritus at The City University of New York, explains that pets genuinely become part of a family. The grief many feel for their pets is on par with grief they may feel for a close family member. Dr. Gloria Horsley of the Open to Hope Foundation discusses with Meagher how adults can help children address their grief and heal from it. This can be especially challenging when everyone in the family is experiencing acute grief from this traumatic loss. Many times, for a child, losing a pet is […]

Valarie Molaison: Communicating with Children after a Suicide

How can you talk to children following a suicide? That’s the question Dr. Heidi Horsley tackles with Dr. Valarie Molaison, the clinical director at Supporting Kids, a non-profit based in Delaware. She’s also a licensed psychologist and a specialist in grief and loss. Suicide is a stigmatized loss already. Should children be told the truth about suicide death? It’s something every family can decide for themselves, but know that experts can’t be the ones to tell you yes or no in this case. However, telling the truth is beneficial in most cases. The risks and benefits need to even out. […]

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.