Bereavement Professionals’ Insights

Chantal – Physical symptoms and grieving

Chantal talks about panic attacks and thinking she was having a heart attack

Maureen – “Carrying grief”

Maureen gives an analogy of how hard it is to carry griefMaureen gives an analogy of how hard it is to carry grief.

Jenn – The difference between expressive and creative arts

Jenn explains the difference between expressive and creative arts. You don’t have to limit yourself to art making to help you through your grief process. Expressive arts encompasses a wide variety of approaches including drama, dance, movement, writing and music

Jean – Be good to yourself

Jean shares about support and not being hard on yourself

Preparing For and Coping with Special Days

Special Days can be days we have honoured with our loved ones that many others celebrate or more personal dates and milestones with your loved one. As these days approach, it can be difficult to figure out how to move through a Special Day. Do you do what you’ve always done? What do you do…

Janice- “Stay with feelings”

Janice talks about how feelings can be buried and how working through them can help.

A Million Other Things: Grieving a Drug Poisoning Death

Sister, father, son, niece, best friend – some of these words might be how you would describe your loved one who has died of an overdose or drug poisoning. People Who Use Drugs (PWUD) are not defined by their substance use – they are a million other things to those who love and miss them dearly. Drug poisoning and overdose deaths are stigmatized in our society. The focus is on how the person died, not who they are. Society still holds onto old notions and beliefs about drugs which come with a value judgment about people who use drugs, which further contributes to stigma. Not everyone who uses drugs is an addict and not all drug use is inherently problematic. People who use drugs deserve dignity and respect when we are remembering and honouring those who have died by overdose or drug poisoning.

Jacqueline – Art therapy and grieving women

Jacqueline explains how helping connect to the heart and reslience with art therapy can be very helpful

Rev. Sky – “Trauma, grief, and loss, sudden death”

Rev. Sky introduces herself and explains why she is in these videos.

Amanda – “It’s a gift to love someone”

Amanda talks about grief and it’s connection to love.

Carrie – Validation

Carrie talks about validation and feeling that someone is full responsive and fully present to you and what is going on in your grief… feeling “felt”

Caileigh – Recommendations as a therapist and a griever

Caileigh discussed two recommendations for parents on how to support their child’s grief. as a therapist and a griever. The first is to recognize that being with is far more important than fixing. There’s two pieces to connection. The first being that one of the most important healing aspects to grief is feeling connected to others.