Grieving Parents Support Network

Find ways for healthy grieving

  • Start Here
    • Welcome, Friend
    • Legal Disclaimer
    • Meet the Founder Nathalie Himmelrich
  • Grief Support
    • Need Grief Support?
    • Peer Support
    • Resources
      • Grief Support Books
    • Supporting Yourself
    • Honouring Your Child
      • Donating a CuddleCot
      • Charity Work
    • Being Supportive
  • Donate
    • Our Charity
    • Make a Charity Donation
    • Our Donors
    • Donate Books
      • Memory Packages
      • Order book packages
  • Books for Grieving Parents
    • GPSN Resource Books
    • Surviving My First Year of Child Loss
      • Surviving My First Year of Child Loss | Book
      • Surviving My First Year of Child Loss | Contributors
      • Donate to the Not-for-Profit Project
    • Das erste Jahr nach dem Verlust meines Kindes überleben | Book
    • Grieving Parents | Book
      • Praise for Grieving Parents
    • Trauernde Eltern | Book
    • May We All Heal Playbook
    • Purchase Books
      • Bulk Order Discounts
      • Order book packages
      • Donate Books
    • Reviews
  • Projects & Events
    • Bridging the Grief Gap
    • May We All Heal
      • May We All Heal 2022 – A New Beginning
      • Share Your Story
    • Advent Calendar
      • Advent Calendar Giveaway Event
      • Advent Calendar Gifts
      • Giveaway Terms and Conditions
    • PAIL — Pregnancy and Infant Loss
    • Grief Reflections
      • Discussions Archive
      • The Hosts – Carly and Nathalie
      • 10 Things About You {Grief Aside}
      • GR Disclaimer
  • Blog
    • Share Your Story
    • Contributors
  • Free Updates
  • enEnglish

Topics for Grief Reflections

September 1, 2014 By Nathalie Himmelrich 18 Comments

W

Two-hands-joining

Join us!

e would like to discuss YOUR preferred topics.

Let us know in a comment, what you would like us to discuss next.

All Love,

Carly & Nathalie

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest

Related

Comments

comments

Comments

  1. Marianne says

    September 1, 2014 at 1:06 pm

    My question for the next reflections would be how to help our living children deal with the death of their sibling? I thought that it was a good idea at the time to have my boys hold their sister and be with us, now I am questioning that decision. My 7 year old asked me the other day if all babies looked like Claire when they are born? I was so sad when he asked this and I am not sure how to help them understand all of this when I am still trying to understand it myself.

    Reply
    • Nathalie Himmerlich says

      September 1, 2014 at 5:41 pm

      Great question, Marianne.
      The topic of siblings is definitely a great suggestion. We will add it to our list. Thank you. Nathalie

      Reply
  2. Karen Morrison says

    September 2, 2014 at 5:25 am

    Would like to discuss the loss and change of friendships after child loss.

    Reply
    • Nathalie Himmerlich says

      September 2, 2014 at 12:33 pm

      Thank you Karen.
      We discussed a little bit about that in our last Grief Reflection on “Relationship Changes” – have a look here http://grievingparents.net/grief-reflections-relationship-changes/ and I will add your suggestion to the list of topics. Thank you. Nathalie

      Reply
  3. Jo-Anne says

    September 2, 2014 at 2:17 pm

    Something very close to my heart is the aspect of sibling grief and how to assist toddlers in specific with grieving and loss. It would be a wonderful topic to start and I believe it will provide alot of people with guidance and support. It is difficult enough losing a child but what is even harder is watching your little one’s struggle with all of these questions they cannot even begin to put into words. When my daughter Zia was born still in July last year, we used the analogy of her flying back to sky, that she was an angel now to explain her death to our four year old son. We told him that she was forever in our hearts but more importantly watching over us all the time. That he could take her with him whereever he goes and that even though he couldn’t see her, she was always with him. That seemed to work temporarily but he still struggled with the fact that she had to leave us at all, he was angry even and sad that she wasn’t coming home. It’s been a hard year and he has coped extremely well, he has taken my description of what happened quite literally and it has helped him talk about her and embrace her as his sister. So I believe this would be something useful for bereaved parents to share and participate in. Jo-Anne

    Reply
    • Nathalie Himmerlich says

      September 3, 2014 at 7:22 am

      Thank you Jo-Anne. You provided a beautiful example of how you handled this with your 4 year-old. There is a section in my forthcoming book talking about sibling grief and specific to different age groups. One thing I heard that I find interesting is that children between the age of 4 and 6 understand the concept of death but lack skills/ways to grieve appropriately as do older children, teens and adults. This obviously is an age bracket that needs to be seen in context of your individual child’s development and understanding, as well as the parents’ way of dealing with it.
      This topic has been mentioned before so we will definitely talk about it soon. Thank you, Nathalie

      Reply
  4. Latoya says

    September 2, 2014 at 5:28 pm

    My question is what can i do so i would not feel like everyone forgot about my child.

    Reply
    • Nathalie Himmerlich says

      September 3, 2014 at 7:17 am

      Thank you Latoya.
      We spoke a little bit about this question in our latest Grief Reflection on “Relationship Changes” – have a look here http://grievingparents.net/grief-reflections-relationship-changes/
      and I will add your question to the list of topics to discuss. Thank you, Nathalie

      Reply
  5. Lee DeNigris says

    September 3, 2014 at 9:20 am

    I am so looking forward to your book!! I would love to have a discussion on ANGER!! How and why it rears its ugly head, mostly to those we love the most.

    Reply
    • Nathalie Himmerlich says

      September 3, 2014 at 7:55 pm

      Thank you Lee. This is a great topic and I can speak about that from personal experience… I can really relate and I’m sure many can. Great suggestion! Nathalie

      Reply
  6. Sara says

    September 3, 2014 at 9:41 am

    I’d like to discuss simple things you can do in everyday life to honor the child you lost.

    Reply
    • Nathalie Himmerlich says

      September 3, 2014 at 7:57 pm

      Thank you Sara. We talked a bit about dealing with anniversary here: http://grievingparents.net/grief-reflections-handling-anniversaries-2/ but definitely should talk about everyday life. I’ll add this topic to the list. Thank you, Nathalie

      Reply
  7. Alex Bustamante says

    September 3, 2014 at 6:47 pm

    Hello Nathalie! I’d be interested about handling grief with siblings/children – at different ages – too. Personally my wife and I chose to be pretty open but asked ourselves how others dealt with the matter. We’re looking forward to reading your book! Alex

    Reply
    • Nathalie Himmerlich says

      September 3, 2014 at 7:58 pm

      Thank you Alex. Yes, good topic for discussion. There is chapter on siblings grief and how they deal with it as part of my forthcoming book. It has been asked for a few times in this post, so it will definitely be a topic very soon. Thank you for your support 🙂 Nathalie

      Reply
  8. Caitlin says

    September 3, 2014 at 6:50 pm

    I’ve experienced a few losses in the early 2nd trimester before getting pregnant with my daughter and know how it is to experience a miscarriage but I have a friend who had twin girls at about 28 weeks gestation. One of the twins had a condition which caused her to only live about 3 hours after birth. She lives about 12+ hours away from me so I can’t go down to visit and though I know what it’s like to lose a child, I was wondering if maybe it can be discussed how to talk to a friend who has had one living twin and one twin who has passed shortly after birth. I know a lot of people don’t think of a miscarriage and the death of a newborn as the same thing (though, I feel a loss is a loss no matter how you put it). The girls’ 1st birthday is approaching in November. Thank you! <3

    Reply
    • Nathalie Himmerlich says

      September 3, 2014 at 8:03 pm

      Thank you Caitlin. Have you received the 5 ***** STAR GRIEF SUPPORT GUIDE when you signed up for email updates here? There are some general suggestions on how to be a good support person. From my personal experience of raising a twinless twin and living with the loss of her identical twin sister, which is 3 years today, I can say that for me it’s meaningful if people mention both girls in conversations, especially around birthday. They both have their birthday and it means a lot to me when someone notices that.
      I totally agree with you that a loss is a loss no matter what gestation or age. What is different is everyone’s grief and how they deal with it. The best is always to ask your friend: What do you need? What would be most supportive to you? … and then use that as a guide to how best support her. All Love, Nathalie

      Reply
  9. christina says

    September 3, 2014 at 10:54 pm

    I would like to see how family and friends are affected by this

    Reply
    • Nathalie Himmerlich says

      September 6, 2014 at 9:50 am

      Thank you Christina, we spoke a little bit about this question in our latest Grief Reflection on “Relationship Changes” – have a look here http://grievingparents.net/grief-reflections-relationship-changes/
      and I will add your question to the list of topics to discuss. Thank you, Nathalie

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

4 − 2 =

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Join to receive a free 33-steps support guide.

    We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe at anytime.
    Built with ConvertKit

    Hi There, I’m Nathalie…

    I'm the founder of the Grieving Parents Support Network (GPSN), the May We All Heal peer support group. I'm also the author of numerous grief resource books. As a psychotherapist, I work mainly in the area of grief recovery. You can also find me here @NathalieHimmelrich Read More…

    • Start Here
    • Order book packages
    • Donate
    • Donate Books
    • Privacy Policy

    Copyright Nathalie Himmelrich © 2023 · Log in

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However you may visit Cookie Settings to provide a controlled consent.
    Cookie settingsACCEPT
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
    CookieDurationDescription
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
    viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
    Functional
    Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
    Performance
    Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
    Analytics
    Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
    Advertisement
    Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
    Others
    Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
    Save & Accept
     

    Loading Comments...