Harriet Hodgson

Harriet Hodgson has been a freelancer for 43 years, is the author of thousands of articles, and 47 books, including 10 grief resources. She is a member of the Association of Health Care Journalists, Alliance of Independent Authors, Minnesota Coalition for Grief Education and Support, and Grief Coalition of Southeastern Minnesota. She is well acquainted with grief. In 2007 four family members died—her daughter (mother of her twin grandchildren), father-in-law, brother (and only sibling) and the twins’ father. Multiple losses shifted the focus of Hodgson’s work from general health to grief resolution and healing. She has appeared on more than 185 radio talk shows, including CBS Radio, and dozens of television stations, including CNN. In addition to writing for Open to Hope, Hodgson is a contributing writer for The Grief Toolbox website and The Caregiver Space website. A popular speaker, she has given presentations at The Compassionate Friends national conference, Bereaved Parents of the USA national conference, and Zoom grief conferences. Her work is cited in Who’s Who of American Women, World Who’s Who of Women, Contemporary Authors, and other directories. For more information about this busy grandmother, great grandmother, author, and speaker please visit I’m no longer Assistant Editor, I’m the author of 47 books, and my website is www.harriethodgson.net.

Articles:

Writing Your Book about Grief: Helpful Tips for Beginning Writers

I’ve been a freelance writer for 36+ years, focusing on health and wellness books. My latest book focuses on the steps I took to recover from multiple losses. Four family members died in 2007 and, thanks to grief work and introspection, I created a new life. So many people asked me how I managed to do this that I listed my recovery steps on paper. These steps became a talk and the talk became a book. My current publisher was interested in this grief resource, and I sent the manuscript to the executive director. The company has a collaborative agreement […]

Chance Meeting and Comfort in a Discount Store

I went to my favorite discount store to see the new fall clothing. While I was pushing my cart past a woman, I commented, “Passing on the right.” After I passed the woman I turned to her and said, “We’re looking at long-sleeved tops. It’s hard to believe summer is over and fall is here.” She smiled a bit and looked at me. “I’m here to buy something to wear to my mother’s memorial service,” she said. “My mother died two days ago.” “I’m so sorry,” I said. The woman went on to tell me her 29-year-old son committed suicide […]

Let Me Tell You About My Grief: Releasing Hidden Feelings

Americans tend to avoid grief. We watch hurricane disasters and fires and car crashes on television, but when it comes to listening to someone’s grief story, many of us want to be elsewhere. According to a common myth, mourners “get over it” in three weeks or so, a notion so far from reality it’s laughable. Bereaved people like me are everywhere — at the grocery store, filling car gas tanks, walking discount store aisles, and waiting at red lights. After four of my family members died in 2007 I wanted to release the pain of grief and tell everyone about […]

Are You Experiencing Grief, Trauma or Both?

In 2007, on a snowy February night, my elder daughter died from the injuries she received in a car crash. Surgeons operated on her for 20 hours, but her injuries were too severe and they were unable to save her life. Blut force trauma was the actual cause of death — three words a parent never wants to hear or say. The death of a child is bad enough; the death of a child from blunt force trauma is horrific. I wondered about my daughter’s last minutes of life and worried about my granddaughter, a passenger in the car. Why […]

Promoting Grief Recovery with Pep Talks

Though grief is a universal experience, each person’s grief is unique. You have to find your own way through grief. This path will lead you to grief work and things that you tell yourself. Four of my family members died in 2007. “You will get through this,” a relative assured me. Her confidence in me boosted my confidence in me. Still, I had to give myself one-sentence pep talks. For example, I told myself I had experienced grief before and this experience could work for me. I also knew I had good coping skills. Some days, however, when life was […]

My Daughter’s Spirit is Part of Me

Coming to terms with the death of a child is an ongoing process. I discovered this after my daughter died from the injuries she received in a car crash. Today, six years later, thanks to grief work and introspection, my daughter’s spirit is part of me. Many others have come to the same awareness. Cheryl Strayed writes about recovering from the death of her mother in Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail. When I ordered the book online I didn’t know much about it and thought it was a book about hiking. It is about hiking, […]

Painful Memories can be a Bridge to Recovery

Life has its ups and downs. After a loved one dies it’s normal to feel down and depressed, but you may also be plagued by painful memories. You wish these memories would go away and leave you alone, yet they keep coming back. What can you do with painful memories? I asked myself this question after four family memers died in 2007. When I reviewed my experiences with each of these people, painful memories came to mind, and I decided to learn from them. First, I let the memories come. Clearly, my subconscious mind was processing information and I let […]

When My Grandkids Come Home Joy Returns

Six years have passed since my adult daughter died. During these years my husband and I were their legal guardians and fiscal conservators. The twins, one boy and one girl, were 15 years old when they moved into our home. They graduated from high school, entered college, and are incoming seniors today. Since they are legal adults, they are pretty independent, and do not share all of their plans with us. This is as life should be. We are the home they come home to, and when I hear one of the twins or both, is headed home I become […]

I Finally Wrote THE LETTER to my Deceased Daughter

For six years, I had heard about and read about the practice of writing a letter to a deceased loved one, and not mailing it. According to grief experts, writing a letter helps you to heal. Writing the letter also helps you to let go. Bob Deits, author of Life After Loss, says this is the most difficult letter you will ever write, and it demands your best. I agreed with his points and, though I was impressed with his wisdom, I did not write THE LETTER. This idea had become a giant billboard in my mind, with the words […]

Raising Grandkids: I’m an Empty Nester Again

Long before my grandkids moved in with us, I was aware of empty nest syndrome. I had experienced it with my daughters and remember how lonely I felt in a quiet house without my daughter’s chatter. Both of them are enrolled as entering college seniors, and living their own lives. And I am an empty nester again. In the six years that have passed since my twin grandkids lost their parents in separate car crashes, I have become re-acquainted with teenagers, learned some new jargon, learned about new customs, and learned that I need my grandkids more than they need […]

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.