Is There No Other Way: Exploring Growth Through Grief

Is There No Other Way: Exploring Growth Through Grief

Author: Emily Adams

Publisher: Cfi

Published: 2020-11-10

Total Pages: 128

ISBN-13: 9781462138654

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After experiencing the devastation of losing one of our identical twin boys, I was exposed to a world of sorrow formerly unimagined. With new eyes opened to the heartbreak of the women surrounding me, I undertook the daunting task of researching the universality of suffering, primarily by documenting the stories of fifty women concentrated in a five-mile radius. These accounts of tragedy and hope are intermingled with scriptural accounts, the words of modern-day apostles and prophets, psychological and sociological views, as well as my own experiences. This book is a tapestry of vast human experience, covering a wide array of challenges including infertility, loss, abuse, mental and physical health issues, suicide, financial stress, divorce, addiction, and more. And yet, despite the myriad of trials and accompanying grief, these women exemplify testimonies of faith, resilience, and love. As they move through the three phases of a Grief to Growth Mindset (Victim to Survivor to Contributor), I document helpful tools for embracing, moving through, and learning to assist others because of our sorrows.


The Wild Edge of Sorrow

The Wild Edge of Sorrow

Author: Francis Weller

Publisher: North Atlantic Books

Published: 2015-09-15

Total Pages: 225

ISBN-13: 1583949763

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The work of the mature person is to carry grief in one hand and gratitude in the other and be stretched large by them. As seen on All There Is with Anderson Cooper Noted psychotherapist Francis Weller provides an essential guide for navigating the deep waters of sorrow and loss in this lyrical yet practical handbook for mastering the art of grieving. Describing how Western patterns of amnesia and anesthesia affect our capacity to cope with personal and collective sorrows, Weller reveals the new vitality we may encounter when we welcome, rather than fear, the pain of loss. Through moving personal stories, poetry, and insightful reflections he leads us into the central energy of sorrow, and to the profound healing and heightened communion with each other and our planet that reside alongside it. The Wild Edge of Sorrow explains that grief has always been communal and illustrates how we need the healing touch of others, an atmosphere of compassion, and the comfort of ritual in order to fully metabolize our grief. Weller describes how we often hide our pain from the world, wrapping it in a secret mantle of shame. This causes sorrow to linger unexpressed in our bodies, weighing us down and pulling us into the territory of depression and death. We have come to fear grief and feel too alone to face an encounter with the powerful energies of sorrow. Those who work with people in grief, who have experienced the loss of a loved one, who mourn the ongoing destruction of our planet, or who suffer the accumulated traumas of a lifetime will appreciate the discussion of obstacles to successful grief work such as privatized pain, lack of communal rituals, a pervasive feeling of fear, and a culturally restrictive range of emotion. Weller highlights the intimate bond between grief and gratitude, sorrow and intimacy. In addition to showing us that the greatest gifts are often hidden in the things we avoid, he offers powerful tools and rituals and a list of resources to help us transform grief into a force that allows us to live and love more fully.


All Our Losses, All Our Griefs

All Our Losses, All Our Griefs

Author: Kenneth R. Mitchell

Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press

Published: 1983-01-01

Total Pages: 196

ISBN-13: 9780664244934

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Grief as a lifelong human experience is the scope of this absorbing book. Kenneth R. Mitchell and Herbert Anderson explore the multiple dimensions of the problem, including orgins of grief, loss throughout life, dynamics of grief, care for those who grieve, and the theology of grieving. This examination of the process of grief is enriched by vivid illustrations and case histories of individuals whose experiences the authors have shared.


The Care and Feeding of a Pet Black Hole

The Care and Feeding of a Pet Black Hole

Author: Michelle Cuevas

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2018-09-11

Total Pages: 226

ISBN-13: 039953914X

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A girl's friendship with a lonely black hole leads her to face her own sadness in this original, funny, and touching middle grade novel for fans of Crenshaw and Flora & Ulysses. When eleven-year-old Stella Rodriguez shows up at NASA to request that her recording be included in Carl Sagan's Golden Record, something unexpected happens: A black hole follows her home, and sets out to live in her house as a pet. The black hole swallows everything he touches, which is challenging to say the least—but also turns out to be a convenient way to get rid of those items that Stella doesn't want around. Soon the ugly sweaters her aunt has made for her all disappear within the black hole, as does the smelly class hamster she's taking care of, and most important, all the reminders of her dead father that are just too painful to have around. It's not until Stella, her younger brother, Cosmo, the family puppy, and even the bathroom tub all get swallowed up by the black hole that Stella comes to realize she has been letting her own grief consume her. And that's not the only thing she realizes as she attempts to get back home. This is an astonishingly original and funny adventure with a great big heart.


Unsolaced

Unsolaced

Author: Gretel Ehrlich

Publisher: Pantheon

Published: 2021-01-05

Total Pages: 257

ISBN-13: 0307911799

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From the author of the enduring classic The Solace of Open Spaces, here is a wondrous meditation on how water, light, wind, mountain, bird, and horse have shaped her life and her understanding of a world besieged by a climate crisis. Amid species extinctions and disintegrating ice sheets, this stunning collection of memories, observations, and narratives is acute and lyrical, Whitmanesque in breadth, and as elegant as a Japanese teahouse. “Sentience and sunderance,” Ehrlich writes. “How we know what we know, who teaches us, how easy it is to lose it all.” As if to stave off impending loss, she embarks on strenuous adventures to Greenland, Africa, Kosovo, Japan, and an uninhabited Alaskan island, always returning to her simple Wyoming cabin at the foot of the mountains and the trail that leads into the heart of them.


Grief 2 Growth

Grief 2 Growth

Author: Brian D Smith

Publisher: Independently Published

Published: 2019-07-08

Total Pages: 102

ISBN-13: 9781079128710

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Grief. We avoid talking about it. We avoid thinking about it. However, every one of us who lives long enough will experience it. Since you are reading this, you are likely experiencing grief at this moment. It is also likely you've given little thought as to how you were going to cope with grief when it came to you, and the pain caught you off guard.In Grief 2 Growth, Brian Smith explores what grief is, what you can expect while in grief, and how you can best cope with the universal human experience of grief. Grief is not an emotion. Grief is a container for a myriad of emotions that ebb and flow. Rather than a linear process, grief is more like a dance. Once Brian has explained what grief is and what you can expect from grief, Brian gives simple, practical methods for coping. You can do more than deal with grief. You can transform your pain into an opportunity for growth. When a great tragedy befalls us, we can see ourselves as either planted or buried. Being buried means we are done. Being planted means, we are in a position where growth is about to take place. Brian's approach to handling grief is rooted in a firm understanding of who we are as spiritual beings having a human experience.About The AuthorBrian became well acquainted with grief in 2015 after the sudden passing of his fifteen-year-old daughter Shayna. Brian first learned how to survive for the sake of his wife and surviving daughter. Brian studied in depth the nature of life and death and how to progress through grief. Currently, Brian does volunteer work with organizations dedicated to helping parents heal from the passing of a child. Brian also operates a life coaching and small business consulting practice. You can find Brian at www.grief2growth.com.iversal human experience of grief. Grief is not an emotion, grief is a container for a myriad of emotions that ebb and flow (credit to R. Glenn Kelly for this insight). Once he has explained what grief is and what you can expect from grief, Brian gives simple, practical methods you can use to not only cope with grief but to transform your grief into an opportunity for growth. When a great tragedy befalls us, we can see ourselves as either planted or buried. Brian's approach to handling grief is rooted in a firm understanding of who we are as spiritual beings having a human experience.About The AuthorBrian became well acquainted with grief in 2015 after the sudden passing of his fifteen-year-old daughter Shayna. After turning inward to learn how to survive for the sake of his wife and daughter, Brian turned outward. Brian studied in depth the nature of life and death and how to progress through grief. Turning outward, Brian does volunteer work with organizations dedicated to helping parents heal from the passing of a child and in a life coaching and small business consulting practice.


Option B

Option B

Author: Sheryl Sandberg

Publisher: Knopf

Published: 2017-04-24

Total Pages: 241

ISBN-13: 1524732699

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#1 NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • From authors of Lean In and Originals: a powerful, inspiring, and practical book about building resilience and moving forward after life’s inevitable setbacks After the sudden death of her husband, Sheryl Sandberg felt certain that she and her children would never feel pure joy again. “I was in ‘the void,’” she writes, “a vast emptiness that fills your heart and lungs and restricts your ability to think or even breathe.” Her friend Adam Grant, a psychologist at Wharton, told her there are concrete steps people can take to recover and rebound from life-shattering experiences. We are not born with a fixed amount of resilience. It is a muscle that everyone can build. Option B combines Sheryl’s personal insights with Adam’s eye-opening research on finding strength in the face of adversity. Beginning with the gut-wrenching moment when she finds her husband, Dave Goldberg, collapsed on a gym floor, Sheryl opens up her heart—and her journal—to describe the acute grief and isolation she felt in the wake of his death. But Option B goes beyond Sheryl’s loss to explore how a broad range of people have overcome hardships including illness, job loss, sexual assault, natural disasters, and the violence of war. Their stories reveal the capacity of the human spirit to persevere . . . and to rediscover joy. Resilience comes from deep within us and from support outside us. Even after the most devastating events, it is possible to grow by finding deeper meaning and gaining greater appreciation in our lives. Option B illuminates how to help others in crisis, develop compassion for ourselves, raise strong children, and create resilient families, communities, and workplaces. Many of these lessons can be applied to everyday struggles, allowing us to brave whatever lies ahead. Two weeks after losing her husband, Sheryl was preparing for a father-child activity. “I want Dave,” she cried. Her friend replied, “Option A is not available,” and then promised to help her make the most of Option B. We all live some form of Option B. This book will help us all make the most of it.


The Madness of Grief

The Madness of Grief

Author: Richard Coles

Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson

Published: 2021-04-01

Total Pages: 138

ISBN-13: 1474619649

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THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER 'Immensely moving and disarmingly witty' Nigella Lawson 'Such a moving, tough, funny, raw, honest read' Matt Haig 'Beautifully written, moving and gut-wrenching, but also at times very funny' Ian Rankin 'Captures brilliantly, beautifully, bravely the comedy as well as the tragedy of bereavement' The Times 'Will strike a chord with anyone who has grieved' Independent Whether it is pastoral care for the bereaved, discussions about the afterlife, or being called out to perform the last rites, death is part of the Reverend Richard Coles's life and work. But when his partner the Reverend David Coles died, shortly before Christmas in 2019, much about death took Coles by surprise. For one thing, David's death at the early age of forty-three was unexpected. The man that so often assists others to examine life's moral questions now found himself in need of help. He began to look to others for guidance to steer him through his grief. The flock was leading the shepherd. Much about grief surprised him: the volume of 'sadmin' you have to do when someone dies, how much harder it is travelling for work alone, even the pain of typing a text message to your partner - then realising you are alone. The Reverend Richard Coles's deeply personal account of life after grief will resonate, unforgettably, with anyone who has lost a loved one.


Continuing Bonds

Continuing Bonds

Author: Dennis Klass

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 2014-05-12

Total Pages: 388

ISBN-13: 1317763602

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First published in 1996. This new book gives voice to an emerging consensus among bereavement scholars that our understanding of the grief process needs to be expanded. The dominant 20th century model holds that the function of grief and mourning is to cut bonds with the deceased, thereby freeing the survivor to reinvest in new relationships in the present. Pathological grief has been defined in terms of holding on to the deceased. Close examination reveals that this model is based more on the cultural values of modernity than on any substantial data of what people actually do. Presenting data from several populations, 22 authors - among the most respected in their fields - demonstrate that the health resolution of grief enables one to maintain a continuing bond with the deceased. Despite cultural disapproval and lack of validation by professionals, survivors find places for the dead in their on-going lives and even in their communities. Such bonds are not denial: the deceased can provide resources for enriched functioning in the present. Chapters examine widows and widowers, bereaved children, parents and siblings, and a population previously excluded from bereavement research: adoptees and their birth parents. Bereavement in Japanese culture is also discussed, as are meanings and implications of this new model of grief. Opening new areas of research and scholarly dialogue, this work provides the basis for significant developments in clinical practice in the field.


The Other Side of Sadness

The Other Side of Sadness

Author: George A. Bonanno

Publisher: Basic Books

Published: 2019-11-05

Total Pages: 266

ISBN-13: 1541699424

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In this thoroughly revised and updated classic, a renowned psychologist shows that mourning is far from predictable, and all of us share a surprising ability to be resilient The conventional view of grieving--encapsulated by the famous five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance--is defined by a mourning process that we can only hope to accept and endure. In The Other Side of Sadness, psychologist and emotions expert George Bonanno argues otherwise. Our inborn emotions--anger and denial, but also relief and joy--help us deal effectively with loss. To expect or require only grief-stricken behavior from the bereaved does them harm. In fact, grieving goes beyond mere sadness, and it can actually deepen interpersonal connections and even lead to a new sense of meaning in life.