Being able to offer support to the bereaved is an important part of many frontline professions, such as nurses, teachers, funeral directors and anything in between. Yet very little theoretical information about grief has filtered down into mainstream knowledge, and what has is often misinterpreted. Giving an accessible introduction to modern day grief theory, this book is the perfect guide to grief for counsellors, anyone wishing to support the bereaved, or the griever curious to how their grief works. Debunking commonly believed myths with information on how grief can vary from person to person, advice on communicating with the bereaved and details on the different kinds of grief, this book is an essential read for anyone working with the bereaved.

There are an estimated 258 million widows worldwide. Demystifying Grief is a primer for women who’ve lost their partners, an accessible handbook on the physical, emotional, and behavioral effects of grief, and how to survive and heal. In June 2018, Diane Kirby’s life partner of forty-six years died suddenly and unexpectedly. In the aftermath, she discovered that the death of one’s partner is a traumatic, painful, and incredibly solitary experience, particularly in a death-denying society. Divided in two parts, this book deals first with survival, for when grief is fresh, all one can do is simply exist; this section covers the most common reactions to grief, such as grief fog, triggers, and touchstones. The second part deals with healing, for there comes a time when grievers want to do more than just survive; this section covers topics such as grief work, rituals, and growth. Applying social science and personal experience, this author has written a smart, concise, and compassionate guide, delving into the deeply necessary what, why, and how of grief.

Hospice care is available to patients and families dealing with terminal illness. People often do not avail themselves of hospice care because they don’t understand what it entails. Many wait until their last few days to request this extraordinary comfort care instead of using the full six months available to them through Medicare and other insurance options. Demystifying Hospice describes through stories good news about end-of-life issues. Written from the perspective of a licensed social worker with experience in public and private hospitals, hospice, and the American Cancer Society, these first-hand accounts of patients, family members, hospice workers and others will lift spirits, touch hearts, and illustrate the advantages of hospice care. These are real-life examples of personalized comfort care, offered by an interdisciplinary team, where ever the patient lives. Each story addresses some aspect of helping families through the caregiving and grieving process, which are part-and-parcel of a serious illness, and offers comfort and understanding to readers who may be going through similar experiences. This book describes hope, healing, and support through difficult times.

What if, as we navigate loss and grief, our loved ones are walking beside us on the other side of the veil? What if we could learn to not only connect with our ancestors but also to Spirit? In this personal memoir of grief and healing, Diane Kirby explores her family’s history with tragedy and spirituality, the sudden death of her husband and her overwhelming grief, and her journey back to the wisdom of her Scottish ancestors. Diane examines her parents’ remarkable abilities as Spiritualists, chronicles her own experiences with spiritual healings, and ultimately refines her own path to Mediumship. With self-help undertones, this memoir offers comfort in times of grief, resources for connecting to spiritual communities, insights on both seeking spiritual healing and refining Mediumship skills, and background on Scottish ancestry and generational wisdom. Grief and the Spirit World: A Search for Comfort explores the complexities of grief—not only the sorrow, but also the hopefulness—and confirms that in grief, as we heal, we can help others.

When T.J. Wray lost her 43-year-old brother, her grief was deep and enduring and, she soon discovered, not fully acknowledged. Despite the longevity of adult sibling relationships, surviving siblings are often made to feel as if their grief is somehow unwarranted. After all, when an adult sibling dies, he or she often leaves behind parents, a spouse, and even children—all of whom suffer a more socially recognized type of loss. Based on the author's own experiences, as well as those of many others, Surviving the Death of a Sibling helps adults who have lost a brother or sister to realize that they are not alone in their struggle. Just as important, it teaches them to understand the unique stages of their grieving process, offering practical and prescriptive advice for dealing with each stage. In Surviving the Death of a Sibling, T.J. Wray discusses: • Searching for and finding meaning in your sibling's passing • Using a grief journal to record your emotions • Choosing a grief partner to help you through tough times • Dealing with insensitive remarks made by others Warm and personal, and a rich source of useful insights and coping strategies, Surviving the Death of a Sibling is a unique addition to the literature of bereavement.

Featuring a unique clinical and educational approach, Demystifying the DSM: A Tool for School Counseling Students and Practitioners introduces readers to common diagnoses among children and youth. The text also provides counseling students and practitioners with a baseline knowledge of the cognitive and behavioral effects of common diagnoses on the academic, social, and emotional development of children in K-12 settings. The text recognizes that school counselors do not diagnose, but are charged with working with students within the school environment, so understanding common diagnoses for children and youth is a critical component of job effectiveness. Each diagnosis addressed was selected in consultation with experienced practicing school counselors. The chapters cover autism spectrum disorder, ADHD, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social anxiety disorder, PTSD, self-harm, grief and bereavement, among other common diagnoses. Each of the 17 chapters includes case examples with related questions, as well as strategies for working with children and youth with the particular cognitive or behavioral disorder addressed. Demystifying the DSM is well suited for courses and programs in counseling, school counseling, and special education, as well as teacher education and school psychology.

We are a death phobic society. Consequently, we provide very little help to our citizens in dealing with the one common denominator that we all face, the death of those we love. The paucity of death education programs in our elementary and secondary schools is evident of our death avoidance culture. Although many of our schools do attempt to assist the thousands of children and adolescents yearly who lose parents, siblings, and other loved ones, their efforts tend to focus on how to assist the newly bereaved student in the days immediately following the loss. Very few schools have a long term approach that extends far beyond the immediate crisis, seeking to assist students with the life altering changes that follow the death of a family member. Dr. Luciano Sabatini, a former school counselor and director of guidance, offers a guide to school based professionals, especially those involved in crisis counseling, on how to assist students through crisis intervention teams, educational awareness and support groups. He shares his experiences in working with bereaved students and what he has learned from them in coming to terms with a devastating loss. He also offers school leaders best practices in supporting grieving students and in managing a school grieving the death of a student.

The award-winning novel of a young American girl in France—hailed as “an impressive debut” that is “written with quiet, lyric forcefulness” (Elle). A New York Times Notable Book Young, inexperienced, and fleeing a terrible personal loss, Rosie—the new au pair to the Tivot family estate in France—finds herself ill at ease when trying to connect with Nicole, the cool, distant, and beautifully polished mother of the three children she cares for. There is something about the woman that both fascinates and unnerves Rosie. The same is true of the rest of the Tivot clan. Nicole’s dissatisfied husband, Marc, and their children all seem to be caught in an unending struggle against each other for love and acceptance. Only when Rosie is sent to care for Nicole’s now-elderly guardian—the storyteller of the family’s secrets—does she finally discover the truth. There, Rosie will learn of a past darkened by war, duplicity, and a tragedy that still resonates in the Tivot’s lives . . . With this novel of family, betrayal, and the naïveté of youth, Lily King has spun a story that is “powerful . . . splendid . . . [and all] so assured that it’s hard to believe the book itself is her debut” (The New York Times Book Review). “Expertly constructed, full of surprises, superbly paced and sweetly sad, King’s book hardly reads like a first novel.” —Publishers Weekly

In this deeply emotional memoir, a longtime ESPN writer reflects on the suicide of his son Max and delves into how their complicated relationship led him to see grief as love. In February 2015, Ivan Maisel received a call that would alter his life forever: his son Max's car had been found abandoned in a parking next to Lake Ontario. Two months later, Max's body would be found in the lake. There’d been no note or obvious indication that Max wanted to harm himself; he’d signed up for a year-long subscription to a dating service; he’d spent the day he disappeared doing photography work for school. And this uncertainty became part of his father’s grief. I Keep Trying to Catch His Eye explores with grace, depth, and refinement the tragically transformative reality of losing a child. But it also tells the deeply human and deeply empathetic story of a father’s relationship with his son, of its complications, and of Max and Ivan’s struggle—as is the case for so many parents and their children—to connect. I Keep Trying to Catch His Eye is a stunning, poignant exploration of the father and son relationship, of how our tendency to overlook men’s mental health can have devastating consequences, and how ultimately letting those who grieve do so openly and freely can lead to greater healing.

`This book makes a significant contribution to the literature. The author is to be commended for the huge amount of work he has put into this volume which deserves to be widely used′ - Professor Bernard Moss, Staffordshire University All social workers encounter complex and diverse forms of loss throughout their practice. Working with Loss, Death and Bereavement helps trainee and practitioners navigate these difficult situations by developing the skills and values necessary for effective and empowering practice. Each chapter is grounded in social work theory and is illustrated by practice scenarios, exercises, suggestions for further study, and contemporary cultural examples from novels and films. The book explores: • definitions and assessment of loss • psychological aspects of loss and grief • skills, methods and theories working with the individual • families, support groups and communities • avenues of support for social workers • key themes of anti-discriminatory practice, evidence based practice and ethical awareness. This invaluable skills-based book meets the training requirements for social workers and will be essential reading for students or practitioners wishing to reflect on and develop their own practice in working with loss, death and bereavement. Jeremy Weinstein worked as a social worker prior to teaching at London South Bank University, where he is now a Visiting Fellow. Jeremy is an accredited trainer and gestalt psychotherapist with a small private practice offering therapy, supervision and consultation.