Supporting Others

Madelyn – Holding space

Madelyn explains how holding space can help anyone in grief

Nicole – Stigma Surrounding Drug Use

Nicole discusses how the stigma around drug use has an impact on how people feel able to grieve when those in their community are lost.

Rev. Sky – “Helping a friend”

Rev. Sky discusses the grief motto 80% listening, 20% talking and how to help someone in grief.

John Martin – Grief – Don’t Ignore Your Losses. Loss needs to be acknowledged.

John explains why it is important to acknowledge grief

Sunny- Supporting My Grieving Mom

A Million Other Things: Grieving a Drug Poisoning Death

Sister, father, son, niece, best friend – some of these words might be how you would describe your loved one who has died of an overdose or drug poisoning. People Who Use Drugs (PWUD) are not defined by their substance use – they are a million other things to those who love and miss them dearly. Drug poisoning and overdose deaths are stigmatized in our society. The focus is on how the person died, not who they are. Society still holds onto old notions and beliefs about drugs which come with a value judgment about people who use drugs, which further contributes to stigma. Not everyone who uses drugs is an addict and not all drug use is inherently problematic. People who use drugs deserve dignity and respect when we are remembering and honouring those who have died by overdose or drug poisoning.

Ghosts From The Past

I met Holly riding the bus in our community. She is very attractive with a winsome smile and piercing eyes that I would trade anything for. She was also the bus driver. At that time Holly went to school to become a nurse. After becoming a nurse, Holly didn’t drive the bus that much, but one of her fellow bus drivers mentioned to me that one of Holly’s patients had died and it had a negative impact on her. It brought back ghosts from my past as I also had a job in which people died which had a negative impact on me.

There One Day and Gone the Next : Art Therapy and Grief

This blog post contains information about using art therapy to process grief, including specific examples.

John Martin – Recognize What Your Loss Means For You Now And In The Future

John discusses what comes next after initial shock

Community Grief Toolkit [Downloadable!]

This toolkit also reflects on how we support grief in the community. The tools to come together and honour our collective experiences and how to build the resources for further support.

Caileigh – Through play children learn so much about their grief

Caileigh discussed how children learn so much about their grief through play. There’s less confusion, there’s less anxiety, there’s more awareness. For the child and the parent, there is more acceptance of grief.

Amber – Talking about death

Amber explains why it’s so important to talk about grief and her kids