(818) 788-HOPE (4673)
Grief Support Groups Serving West Los Angeles, Encino and Agoura Hills

Posts by HOPE Connection (Page 3)

The Value of Sitting With Your Pain

Jill Smolowe, an author who has written about her own experience with grieving, reflected on what pain meant to her following the death of four of her loved ones in quick succession when she was in her thirties. In her article, The Value of Sitting With Your Pain, she says, “While grappling with that pile-on of losses, I discovered that something a therapist had told me years earlier was true: my pain would be more tolerable if I could ‘just sit with it.’ “  

The Phone of the Wind

If you are grieving for a spouse or anyone else you loved who has died, you have probably found yourself talking to them at times. Late at night, holding a pillow next to you, perhaps, or alone as you walk along a trail. More than likely, you have found this comforting, to simply talk to your loved one… ask questions… reminisce… or…

The Phone Of The Wind

If you are grieving for a spouse or anyone else you loved who has died, you have probably found yourself talking to them at times. Late at night, holding a pillow next to you, perhaps, or alone as you walk along a trail. More than likely, you have found this comforting, to simply talk to your loved one… ask questions… reminisce… or tell them about all the things that are happening in your life.

Dancing With Widow – The Year of Firsts

Following the death of her husband of 26 years in May of 2017, Marianne Simon began Poetic Plantings Publishing as a “the first step in the journey of all that I am still becoming.” They call it that – “the year of firsts.” The implication is that it will be a painful year of all the landmarks you will survive without your…

Two Facts & Three Myths About Grief

Grief is simply a fact of life. If you love someone, then you are destined to experience grief. Fortunately, this simple truth has become more accepted and recognized. From the publication of “On Death and Dying” in 1969 by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, the subject has become much more openly discussed. It has become so common that National Grief Awareness Day hardly raises an eyebrow. This year, National Grief Awareness Day is August 31, and we invite you to consider some of the insights expressed on National Today’s website:

Becoming Home

Grief is a journey, and each person’s journey is unique. Michael F. DuBois had a close relationship with his mother, and when she died when he was 22 he found that he was lost in his grief, seemingly unable to move on. That led him to produce this film, an exploration of his mother’s life and the impact it had on the…

Donate Today To Help Us Bring Hope To More Hearts

When Lynne lost her husband of 52 years, she had good support from family, friends and therapists, but it wasn’t enough. “They want to make you feel better,” she recalls. They wanted to “get things back to where they were.” But she knew that wasn’t the process of grief. So, she sought out HOPE Connection. In the Spousal Loss group, she found what she needed: a safe place to fall. 

The Power of Rituals For Healing Grief

After the dust begins to settle following a major loss, people often struggle to return to their routines in a way that honors and makes space for their bereavement. Grief rituals can help people find meaning as well as heal.

Rituals are an important way people can adjust to the loss of a loved one, develop an ongoing connection with the deceased and can help create a connection to your community and support system.

No, We Don’t Just “Move On” After Grieving

If your spouse or partner has died, you have probably had people say some things to you that are — however unintentional —completely inappropriate. One sentiment expressed in different ways is the idea that we should “move on” with our lives. As if we just need to get over it. In this powerful TED Talk, Nora McInerny talks about the fallacy of “moving on.”