When you open yourself up to love, you open yourself up to loss.  When you suffer a loss, you will experience the painful emotion we call grief.  It’s a natural response to loss, yet to …

Ed Gray’s grieving process was triggered by deaths of both parents and taking care of his wife who died of Lou Gehrig’s disease. Writing poetry helped Ed to distill his experience down to its essence. …

“I couldn’t care less.”  That’s how I felt in the months and years after I lost my 17-year old son, Michael.  I felt like the life was taken out of me.  I was stripped down …

When we suffer the death of someone we love, we experience mental, emotional and physical distress.  In this fragile state, it is likely that we will feel resentment, indignation or anger.  Sometimes these feelings may …

It was only in the sanctuary of Dr. Walter’s office that I began to feel safe enough to talk about my mother’s suicide. His voice was calming. It was a relief to talk openly with …

In my twelve years as spiritual counselor, I have seen men and women choke back their feelings while simultaneously defending the Almighty who supposedly allowed the devastating events to take place. Unfortunately, both smothering of emotions …

We all are programmed to look forward to each New Year.  How many times have you heard, late in the previous year, “I just want this year to be over with.” “I look forward to …

The holidays have arrived. Normally they are a time for family fun and celebration but when you are grieving the loss of someone who has died, the season is different: it is painful.
Grieving is a …

When we are on a grief journey and someone asks us, “How are you feeling?” the tendency is to say, “I’m fine.” But we’re not fine, and one of my friends pointed that out to …

by O’Della Wilson
Grief and loss are never easy to overcome and most people just don’t know what to do to assist others in their grief. Often times, we simply state “I know this is a …

“There can be no knowledge without emotion. We may be aware of a truth, yet until we have felt its force, it is not ours. To the cognition of the brain must be added the …

I wrote this poem over and over in my head for almost two years. I did not write it down on paper until this past August. I was with my mother, holding …

In this post, I’ll use my experience with Ringo (see Part I) to demonstrate compassionate self-forgiveness, a powerful tool in service to inner healing. There are four steps to this process.
 Step 1. I give voice …

Question from DV: My daughter died in a car accident on May 23,2009. My other daughter and I have our daily moments of crying, shouting, screaming, etc. And we can talk to others or to …

In my younger days, I thought I could control change.  I learned, and not quickly I would add, that no one can control or stop change anymore than one can hold back the tides or …

When my brother Rod killed himself the grief itself made me feel like I was going crazy. One minute I was okay and calm, the next I was hysterical. If we are in the depths …