Bereavement Professionals’ Insights

Jean – My Story

Jean talks about isolation and grieving during a pandemic

Madelyn – Holding space

Madelyn explains how holding space can help anyone in grief

Cara – Intellectual disabilities, sharing and expressing about grief

Cara discusses how it’s very important that people living with intellectual disabilities have the opportunity to not only know about the information about the person being ill and dying and having the choice and opportunity to go to after death rituals. It’s also really important that they get the opportunity to share their story in whatever way they communicate. This can be verbally through sign language, through communication books, art, music, going for walks, being in nature

Maureen – Preparing for holidays

Maureen gives some ideas to help during holidays like connecting and taking time out

Jacqueline – Crying

Jacqueline talks about how grief is love and how crying is natural

Shannon – Losing is a life skill

Shannon shares about losing her husband to suicide, her parents and her father-in-law. She felt broken and to be able to take care of her kids and her self seemed overwhelming. It took someone telling her that you can heal from trauma to give her hope for healing.

Amanda – “Hospice like home”

Amanda discusses the value of feeling like being at home during palliative care.

Left Out: Enfranchising Children’s Grief and Loss

By: Jessica Milette, MSW, RSW All human beings have the capacity to grieve: people with intellectual disabilities, those living with a traumatic brain injury, and children of all ages. However, many people can experience disenfranchised grief when someone dies. Disenfranchised grief is generally grief that is not usually openly acknowledged, socially accepted or publicly mourned.…

Christian – “Growth out of pain”

Christian tells about how grief changes and we grow.

Jessica M – My Story

Jessica talks about losing her grandfather at 14 when her mother was terminal, her mother and aunt died when she was 15. She felt alone until she found a peer support group

Children’s Grief and Loss Toolkit (ages 6-12) [FREE Downloadable PDF]

Grief is a natural experience, and is considered one of the most stressful life events a person can experience. 1 in 14 children under the age of 18 will experience the death of someone close to them. Every year, approximately 200 000 children are grieving the death of someone in their extended family or community.…

Amanda – “Listening”

Amanda shares the importance of listening and being comfortable with silence.