Clara Hinton
Clara Hinton has a burning passion to lend support to parents grieving the loss of a child. At the age of 15, Clara’s 13-year-old sister died tragically, and that loss began a series of events in her life that made grief all-too-real. While experiencing the blessing of living children, Clara has also felt the pain of losing six children due to miscarriage and has delivered one stillborn son. Knowing the grief of child-loss first-hand prompted Clara to write a book, Silent Grief is a grief support website for parents seeking support while going through the pain of loss. Clara also teaches grief coping skills on college campuses, as well as coordinates grief workshops for schools, churches, and hospitals. The first Silent Grief Retreat for Bereaved Parents was held in October 2008, and the Retreats are now planned to be an annual coming together for bereaved parents. Clara appeared on the “Healing the Grieving Heart Radio Show” with Dr. Gloria & Dr. Heidi Horsley to discuss “Finding Your Way After Sibling and Child Loss.” To hear Clara being interviewed on this show, go to the following link: https://www.voiceamerica.com/episode/29829/finding-your-way-after-sibling-and-child-loss
Articles:
What is this Gnawing Feeling I Have in my Stomach?
Following the loss of a child, there is a feeling that most parents get that they can’t seem to explain other than it’s a “gnawing feeling.” It’s not an outright ache, nor is it a sharp pain. It’s just a “feeling” that is always there when you are awake. It feels empty and hollow, and food doesn’t seem to fill it or lessen the feeling. Quite often, after multiple visits to the doctor, there is a shrug of the shoulders and you hear the words, “I just don’t know what this could be. Let’s wait it out and see. All […]
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For Fathers, Loss of a Child Carries Special Burdens
Men go through all kinds of identity changes when they experience the loss of a child, especially a child who is older and has lived long enough to create established memories with his or her father. A man identifies himself by mainly two things: the job he has and the family he has. When a child is taken away by death, a man suddenly loses the largest, most important part of his identity. A real crises situation has been created, not just for the father, but also for role the father plays with the family. Fathers love to feel needed, […]
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Making Amends After Mom is Gone
Mother’s Day had been one of the most dreaded days of my life for a long time–until I learned that guilt can be overcome and forgiveness can take place after the death of your mother. The Mother’s Day before the loss of my stillborn son, I did something that was so out of character for me that I still cannot believe I did it. I totally ignored my mother on Mother’s Day, and I did it knowing that I would hurt her deeply. I was angry with her for being an alcoholic. I was angry with her for ruining her […]
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How a Daughter Helped a Dad Who Had Lost a Child
By Clara Hinton — I only remember two times in my life that I saw my father cry: the day he realized all of his hair was falling out at age 30, and the day my 13-year-old sister died. The sight of seeing my father slumped over on the footstool sobbing with his face in his hands after my sister’s death has remained with me for over 50 years now. The day she died, part of my father died, too. Because my sister died on June 5, Father’s Day was only a few days away, and I was worried about […]
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Finding Your Way to a “New Normal”
By Clara Hinton — Grief is such a difficult journey, but it becomes especially difficult around the holiday season. Everywhere you look, there are reminders of family times, laughter and cheer, and times spent sitting around the table telling stories and eating a delicious meal together. For the person who has lost a family member, the holidays take on an entirely new meaning. There are thoughts of emptiness, loneliness, incompleteness and a fear and dread of facing the holidays without their loved one there. The family is no longer whole. Following the death of my 13-year-old sister, the holidays changed […]
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