• RECOVERING from LOSS and GRIEF; SERIOUS ILLNESS
     
    Loss and Grief can be a lonely walk. As difficult as it may be, reaching out for help and support can make all the difference in an individual's or a family's life. Loss and grief are sometimes outlined as various over-lapping stages in a process. The most well-known description comes from Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. She believes that people who are grieving need to remember to take care of themselves. Others have expanded on her understanding of the process. One web-writer accepts and rejects the stages of grief. 
     
    General:  
    Life Transitions 836-6460 is a highly respected local agency that has become part of Hospice in the Buffalo area. They offer individual and family counseling, support groups, hospice bereavement services and bereavement camp for children & teens. See below for more information specific to those living with one who has a life-threatening illness including cancer and also for those who have lost someone. In addition, support groups for caregivers of those with Alzheimer's are offered as well as many other types of opportunities including creative writing groups, alternative medicine presentations and many other types of activities and supports to numerous to list here.    
    Some on-line websites offer different forms of support. On one site the writer expresses what he or she would have said to the person who has passed away. Webhealing includes recommended books, grief discussion boards, an honor page, articles and more. Another website with spiritual overtones that might offer hope and support reminds visitors to be grateful what we have; the site was created by a woman who lost her mother at age three and father at age fourteen.  
    Coping with reminders of someone who passed away can rewaken memories and feelings surrounding the grief process.
     
    End of Life Care and Support:
    Hospice 836-6460 is connected to Life Transitions Center and offers a wide range of support and services to individuals facing a life-threatening illness and to the relatives, friends and families who are part of that person's life and surroundings. Well-trained and highly sensitive staff offer support that can be simple or extensive, depending on the wishes and needs of those involved. Support following the loss is also available. 
     
    Responding to children and adolescents who have experienced loss:
    "Good Grief" provides an extensive list of resources for children and adolescents that are age-specific along with a reading list for adults. Some books have short descriptions. Children grieve in their own way. Articles on this site address topics such as children attending funerals, anticipatory grief and "what to say" to grieving children.   
    "Circle of Daughters" is a small nonprofit agency run by Day Cummings, LCSW-R, 507-6281, that focuses on all types of grief and loss issues. Special healing groups for teens who have lost a family member as well as groups for women who have lost a mother, are offered. Individual and family counseling are also available.   
     
    For families who have lost a son or daughter:
    Compassionate Friends offers support to those parents and families who have lost a child. This national organization works to bring hope, help, support, information and resources through its website and at a local chapter. Another website is dedicated to those parents and families who have experienced the death of a child by violence.
     
    Facing Cancer:
    The beautiful mansion at 1140 Delaware Avenue in Buffalo is the former Gilda's Club of Western New York that merged with Life Transitions in 2012. Free support, services, lectures and activities are available to individuals, families and friends of those living with cancer or have lost someone from cancer. Gilda's Club is and was part of a national organization that offers support, networking, workshops and social activities in beautiful and comfortable settings for people with cancer or to those who have a family member or close friend living with cancer. Although some Gilda's Club chapters remain, many have merged with other organizations with similar services. In Buffalo, Life Transitions offers many activities and events, including special monthly meetings for teens living with cancer or any life threatening illness or who have a family member with cancer or life-threatening illness.
    The highly respected work of Elisabeth Kubler-Ross's  helps people face the process of dying in a healthy and sensitive manner. 
    Dealing with the loss of someone who had cancer can be different because of the nature of the illness. Numerous articles address topics like the process of grief, changes in families and coping with loss.
     
    Loss after suicide:
    Recovering from the loss of someone who commits suicide often has its own set of issues. Suicide can lead to more questions for survivors who are left to deal with the loss; this site offers perspective and links to other helpful sites. One article offers suggestions on how to help a friend or family member survive this kind of loss. Another helpful website developed two on-line groups, one for parents and one for friends/family. Suicide Grief Support Forum offers a variety of very specific on-line groups, from children whose parents have committed suicide to those serving in the military at the time of the suicide and for siblings who have lost a brother or sister.  The America Foundation for Suicide Prevention also offers support.
     
    For teachers:        
    Teachers and schools often play an important role during times of loss and grief. "Tips for Teachers and Parents" offers helpful descriptions, suggestions and resources. "Children and Grief" is a research-based article with specific advice for teachers, parents and care-givers.
     
    For military families:
    Military families may face a complicated and difficult path after the loss of a loved one. See website above for suicide while serving in the military.
     
    Disenfranchised grief:   
    Disenfranchised grief refers to grief that might be unacceptable, invisible or misunderstood by others. Examples could include suicide, drug overdose, violent death and/or could be related to a secret relationship.    
     
     
     
Last Modified on September 15, 2014