Question from a Reader:  I don’t know where or how to start. I lost a beloved dog a month ago. My other dog is critically ill. I lost a very good friend earlier this year. …

Question from a reader: Two months ago, my 21-year-old nephew, my sister’s only child, was killed in a car accident.  I was 19 when he was born.  I have feelings of love for him almost …

Animal Rescuer Devastated As Shelter Disregards Her Wishes
© 2010 by Marty Tousley, CNS-BC, FT, DCC
Question from a reader:  I have been saving sick, feral kittens for over five years.  I expend an enormous amount of …

Question from a reader:  It’s now been six months since my mother died. In many ways it seems like worlds and eons since then, but in some ways not at all. I really miss her …

Mother Agonizes Over Pet’s Burial
Question from a reader:  I am writing in hopes that you may be able to provide advice or support that I can give my parents who just had to euthanize their 12-year-oldd …

Question from a reader: I recently tried to join a grief group. When the leader found out that my wife had not died, she told me that the others in the group would not feel …

You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late . . . the love of our neighbor in all its fullness simply means being able to …

Question from a reader:  I was informed that my mother died, and I am grieving.  My mother left me when I was a little girl.  It hurt.  I denied it for 40 years.  So far, …

Question from a reader: This just isn’t something I can live with. I want to see my dad more than anything in the world. I can’t even go near the words “closure” or “accept.” My …

Question from a reader:  I’m writing this letter in hopes of finding some peace. It will be three years next month that my son was murdered. He was only 18. His mother and I were …

The electronic age is spawning a new way of delivering counseling services, one in which clients and their counselors connect with each other by telephone, e-mail or other electronic means.  Recognizing this trend, many counselors …

Question from Trish: I am the mother of a 6-year-old with Duchenne MD. His life expectancy is 20 years old. I am also an LPC intern (I currently work as a crisis counselor for hurricane victims in …

By – Marty Tousley, CNS-BC, FT
Question: I very sadly had to euthanize my wonderful dog of 8 years last night.  She has been with me with so many other losses and helped me through.  Now …

By Marty Tousley, CNS-BC, FT, DCC
Grief does not wait for death to happen; it occurs both in anticipation of and following a loss. Extended illness, disability, severe accidental injury, a terminal diagnosis or the aging …

Question from a reader: I just wish for the day when I can think of my mom without crying. Why does it seem to last for so long?? It’s been five months since my mom …

By – © 2009 Marty Tousley, CNS-BC, FT
As a hospice bereavement counselor who also specializes in pet loss, I’ve encountered in my support groups and through my Web sites many distraught animal lovers whose beloved …