Bereavement Professionals’ Insights

Tending to My Garden of Grief

So long as I remember the lives of those I have lost, honour their presence and impact on me and celebrate their spirit, they will continue to live with me and the pain will feel bearable. It will no longer stop me in my tracks. Instead, it will encourage me and propel me forward through the transmutation of that grief into something different, something more nuanced and fluid. I’d like to share a practice for processing grief which I have found to be especially helpful.

Caileigh – Grief and child behaviour

Caileigh explains when a child experiences grief or a traumatic grief experience, there’s often behaviour that comes from that. Grief impacts behaviour. And sometimes it can be outward behaviour and sometimes it can be internalized behaviour. The good news about grief and behaviour is that it can be managed and supported through effective communication, through therapy and through coping strategies.

Jen – “Breathing and grief”

Jen talks about how breathing and yoga can help cope.

Madelyn – Expressing your feelings

Madelyn talks about being a 2nd generation Canadian chinese and keeping grief in. She explains the importnace of expressing your feelings and not feel guilty about it

Cheryl – “Complicated Grief”

Cheryl discusses unresolved grief.

Rev. Sky – “Wallowing”

Rev. Sky talks about how wallowing can help you release emotions and heal.

Jen – “From funeral director to yoga for grief”

Jen talks about how being a funeral director and how yoga and grief became connected for her.

Claudia – Art in community versus art therapy

Claudia explains how art therapists are trained and how what they do is different that doing art in community

Jacqueline – It’s an Honour

Jacqueline explains why it’s an honour to be a part of her clients healing journey

Cara – Grief and intellectual disabilities is a topic that needs to “get out there”

Cara shares some information from a participant in her research on intellectual disabilities and the bereaved. A person with an intellectual disability said… “Grief: It’s a topic that needs to get out there” Grief is something that so many people are hesitant to talk about, to display, to show, because there’s so many social rules around how we grieve. This is particularily challenging for the intellectually disabled.

Rev. Sky – “Feeling stuck”

Rev. Sky describes being stuck and shifting.

Jean – It’s all about love

Jean talks about losing her husband to a heart attack on valentines day