About Harriet Hodgson
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Harriet Hodgson, BS, MA, has been an independent journalist for more than 30 years. She is a member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors, the Association of Health Care Journalists and the Association for Death Education and Counseling. She writes for www.ezinearticles.com and has Expert Author and Platinum status. A prolific writer, Hodgson is the author of hundreds of Internet and print articles and 27 books. All of Hodgson’s writing comes from experience and her recent work focuses on grief. She is the author of Smiling Through Your Tears: Anticipating Grief, an Amazon book, written with Lois Krahn, MD, Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Mayo Clinic, in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA. Hodgson is also the author of Writing to Recover: The Journey from Loss and Grief to a New Life, published by Centering Corporation in Omaha, Nebraska, a nationally-known grief resource center. Centering Corporation has also published the Writing to Recover Journal, which contains 100 writing prompts, and the Writing to Recover Affirmations Calendar, a collection of nature photos and life affirmations. A popular speaker, Hodgson has given presentations at Alzheimer’s, hospice, and public health conferences. She has appeared on more than 160 radio talk shows, including CBS Radio, WCCO Radio and “Coping With Caregiving,” an Internet-only radio program broadcast worldwide. Hodgson has also appeared on dozens of television programs/stations, including CNN. Her work is cited in Something About the Author, Who’s Who of American Women, Who’s Who in America, Contemporary Authors, and the next edition of World Who’s Who of Women. Hodgson is a GRG - grandparent raising grandchildren - and lives in Rochester, MN with her husband John and her twin grandchildren. For more information on this busy author and grandmother go to www.harriethodgson.com
Harriet Hodgson's Articles
Caregivers Need Time to Let Go
Last weekend, my husband and I took our granddaughter to college. She is a freshman at a small, historic, respected college in Iowa. We are excited about her college choice and acceptance. But our emotions …
Laughter is Key to Grief Recovery
Humans were meant to laugh. The ability to laugh is wired into our minds, and that is a good thing for all who mourn. Four of my loved ones, including my elder daughter, died in …
How to Reclaim Power After a Loss
The other day, I came across a rerun of Oprah Winfrey’s television show. Interior designer Nate Berkus was one of her guests. He was there to talk about recovering from loss, something Berkus knows all …
How to Tell Your Grief Story So Others Will Listen
Every mourner has a story to share. You may share your story with family members, close friends, and community groups. But you need to share it without upsetting listeners so much they turn you off. …
Graduation Historic Day for Parentless Children Raised by Grandparents
June was graduation month for most American high schools. Our twin grandchildren graduated then, and my husband and I attended the ceremony. It was an emotional experience because we are GRGs, grandparents raising grandchildren. We …
10-Minute Exercise Helps in Grieving Process
More than three years have passed since four family members died. The shock of multiple losses — my elder daughter, father-in-law, brother, and former son-in-law — brought me to my knees. The deaths occurred successively, …
Mother Finds Comfort in Living Her Daughter’s Values
On the first anniversary of our daughter’s death, my husband and I held a graveside service in her memory. It was a brief service because the February temperature hovered around zero and the wind chill …
Mourners Can Choose Happiness, a Gift to Themselves
The death of a loved one changes you forever. You mourn, determine your grief work, do the work, and try to build a new life. At least, these are the things I had to do …
Mourners Surrounded by Sacred Moments
Ever since my daughter died from the injuries she received in a car crash in 2007, I’ve become more aware of the sacred moments in my life. Before she died I thought I was aware …
Despite Losses, We Can Be Who We Want to Be
In her new book, “Just Who Will You Be?” Maria Shriver discusses life purpose and planning. “Ask yourself, ‘Who do I want to be?’ It’s the most important question of your life,” she writes.
Her question …
Multiple Losses Can Increase Isolation
“We don’t see many people these days,” my husband commented.
“I know,” I answered. “It’s because of our multiple losses.”
After our twin grandchildren lost their parents in separate car crashes in 2007 we became their legal …
Coping With Sudden and Traumatic Loss
A sudden and traumatic death shatters your world. The changes may be readily apparent or may take months, or even years, to emerge. In 2007, my elder daughter (mother of my twin grandchildren) and father-in-law …
Raising my Twin Grandchildren: Endings and Beginnings
After our elder daughter was killed in a car crash and our former son-in-law died in another car crash, my husband and I became GRGs – grandparents raising grandchildren. Wow, did our lives change! We …
15 Recovery Promises to Make to Yourself
Until I lost four loved ones in 2007, I did not realize recovering from grief was a personal choice. The shock of multiple losses was so great I could hardly think. Two choices were open …
Prepare Your Response Plan for Grief Triggers
Grief triggers – your deceased loved one’s birthday, the anniversary of your loss, and holiday festivities – are a recovery challenge. How will you respond? Will you continue to move forward with life or will …
Conflicting Feelings on Third Anniversary of Daughter’s Death
Today — February 23, 2010 – is third anniversary of my daughter’s death. She died from the injuries she received in a car crash. I have conflicting feelings: sorrow that will be with me always, …
Remembering Alexandria: A Personal Story of Perinatal Loss
Woman Loses Organs to Cancer, Still Revels in Life
Caregivers Need Time to Let Go
Respecting Boundaries When Comforting a Grieving Heart
Shhhh…Listen Closely. It’s the Sound of Someone Healing
August 26, 2010: Guest Charles Corr: Helping Children Cope with Death and Grief
