GriefHaven Blog | Insights and Stories of Healing

May 26, 2020

How Professionals Can Deal With Families When End Of Life Is Imminent

My question is about anticipatory grief, the distress that family members can feel when a loved one is receiving end-of-life care. I work in a palliative care unit of a large hospital, and we often have families who are overwhelmed with the reality of the patient’s impending death, to a point that they can’t take in the message that further treatment is medically futile–no amount of heroic interventions can restore the person to health, but only prolong the patient’s suffering. Almost always we can control the patient’s pain,

October 19, 2020

Strange Life

When you lose someone you love,
Your life becomes strange,
The ground beneath you becomes fragile,
Your thoughts make your eyes unsure;
And some dead echo drags your voice down
Where words have no confidence

October 7, 2013

Grief Relief Talk Show

Episode 20: Finding Meaning After Loss Watch Susan Whitmore on Grief Relief talk show. She is halfway through the show. On this show, Dr. Gloria Horsley and Dr. Heidi Horsley explore the topic of finding meaning after loss. They interview two inspirational women who, rather than be broken by their experience, have used their tragic losses to make meaning and to help others. The first guest is Ann Khadalia, Social Worker and the second guest is Susan Whitmore founder and CEO of griefHaven. The show closes with a song, I Will Friend You, sung by singer-songwriter Michael Davis.

June 11, 2020

Coping Tools – New and Diverse Experience

New and diverse experiences are linked to enhanced happiness, and this relationship is associated with greater correlation of brain activity, new research has found. The results, which appear in the journal Nature Neuroscience, reveal a previously unknown connection between our daily physical environments and our sense of well-being. "Our results suggest that people feel happier when they have more variety in their daily routines -- when they go to novel places and have a wider array of experiences," explains Catherine Hartley, an assistant professor in New York University's Department of Psychology and one of the paper's co-authors.

April 22, 2020

Regulating Mood During Covid19

Mood varies from hour-to-hour, day-to-day, and healthy mood regulation involves choosing activities that help settle one's mood. However, in situations where personal choices of activities are constrained, such as during periods of social isolation and lockdown, this natural mood regulation is impaired which might result in depression. New research, published today in JAMA Psychiatry, from the Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford suggests a new target for treating and reducing depression is supporting natural mood regulation.

May 27, 2020

Mindfulness For Middleschool Students

Two new studies from MIT suggest that mindfulness -- the practice of focusing one's awareness on the present moment -- can enhance academic performance and mental health in middle schoolers. The researchers found that more mindfulness correlates with better academic performance, fewer suspensions from school, and less stress. "By definition, mindfulness is the ability to focus attention on the present moment, as opposed to being distracted by external things or internal thoughts.

November 23, 2019

2019 – Live Your Best Life Luncheon

The day included a message from our founder and CEO, Susan Whitmore, who started by saying, “I want to talk to you about rabbits! Yes, rabbits! And not just any rabbits, but specifically New Zealand white male rabbits. You see, these rabbits develop heart disease much like humans if they eat a high-fat diet.”

June 17, 2020

Am I Going Crazy? I Lost My Husband In An Accident Over 25 Years Ago

Dear Dr. Neimeyer, I lost my husband in an accident over 25 years ago while we were getting ready for his grandmother’s funeral. There were so many unanswered questions, as our daughter was only a year old and she is now nearing 30. But my question is why I still have my moments of tears and sadness. I can talk about it, and I will tear up as if it just happened. I still function, but I feel like I’m not where I ought to be in life. Can you help me understand? – Connie Dear Connie, As you have found, with the death of a loved one life changes in an instant, but the repercussions can be felt for an eternity.

October 20, 2020

The Year Before Last

The holiday season is approaching,
and with it comes the New Year.
Although for me time passes slowly,
New Year's Day will ring in quickly.

February 25, 2010

2010 – Screening: The Greatest – Director Shana Feste

2010 – Screening: The Greatest – Director Shana Feste Directed and Written by: Shana Feste Featuring: Pierce Brosnan, Susan Sarandon, and Carey Mulligan. Running Time: 100 Minutes Release Date: Friday, April 2nd 2010 An award winning drama representing Shana Feste’s debut as writer/director, “The Greatest” stars Pierce Brosnan and Susan Sarandon as Allen and Grace Brewer, a grief-stricken couple whose family has been pushed to the breaking point by the death of their older son, Bennett, in a car crash. When a young woman, Rose, (Carey Mulligan) shows up a few months later announcing that she is pregnant with Bennett’s child, the Brewer’s are forced to take her in. At first, Rose’s presence threatens to tear the family even further apart but, eventually, her interaction with each of the Brewers proves to be the very thing that brings them back together. THE GREATEST, which Brosnan also produced with longtime partner […]

March 31, 2021

How to Cope with Major Life Changes During the Pandemic

The coronavirus pandemic has changed life as we know it. While it’s no secret that the pandemic has had a negative impact on people and businesses around the world, you may still be able to see a silver lining in all of this. The changes brought on by the pandemic have forced many of us to adopt new routines, healthy habits, and stress coping mechanisms that will stick around long after the pandemic is over. Here’s how to make the best of any tough life changes you may be facing right now.

November 8, 2017

Interview With Marylou Falstreau

Marylou Falstreau Interviewed by Susan Whitmore What inspires you to creat a particular card? Ultimately, every “Women and the Hourglass” image is a reflection of the place I am holding in my own life. The first creation in the series, “One day she woke up and discovered she’d grown wings,” was an acknowledgement of a turning point in my life. I had navigated my way through a pretty significant storm and was worthy of a medal, I believed. “Wings” seemed to be the most appropriate symbol at the time. The next in the series was “One day she woke up and decided to love herself more than she ever thought possible,” and I have since learned that everything good comes from making this powerful decision. Can you tell us a story or two about some images that are especially meaningful to you? Oh, there are so many. Actually, each one […]