This really touched me:

“When a griever starts to speak of any of the events related to the loss events like DIVORCE or DEATH, one of the best things we can do for them is to LISTEN and AFFIRM the emotions. Refrain from analytical assessments which in a manner expresses to them, “You are wrong to be FEELING… bad.” Since GriefRecover® is about completing the EMOTIONS related to loss events, mirror and affirm the emotions. “Oh, ouch [hand over heart], what happened?” Then listen.”

I wonder if people are quick to shut down others who want/need to emote because they are uncomfortable with their own feelings of loss and it’s too painful for them to open up these wounds.

You seem to have quite a gift for helping others through their grief – a gift, it seems, born out of much personal pain and discovery. I’m sure your seminars would be very therapeutic for people who long for healing after experiencing a loss.

Pam
Great Minds, Great Wealth: How to Raise your Return, Reduce your Risk, Cut your Cost

Because it’s about the frame of the response.

Essentially her advise is another way of saying, “DON’T FEEL BAD.” When in actuality, Grief is the normal and natural response to loss. It’s like being told, don’t feel that way. Which is another way of saying, you’re bad or wrong to feel that way.

What is therapeutic is The actions around GRIEF, first and foremost need to be about how to COMPLETE the Grief. Certainly, just swirling and ONLY venting about the grief just reinforce the spiral. On one hand there needs to be permission to feel the grief and say it out loud. THEN to take actions (The Grief Recovery Institute’s process is for completing the emotions.) to complete it.

GRI is opening a branch in the UK as I understand it. Once they do, I’m sure the completion process will spread there as it has been here. Like Yann having found the book. Excellent.

Best regards,

April Braswell

Philip
Consumer Behaviour Expert