Jenna Baddeley
Jenna Baddeley is working on a Ph.D. in clinical and social/personality psychology at the University of Texas at Austin. Her research focuses on the behavioral manifestations and social consequences of psychological pain. She has conducted and published research on why and how bereaved people tell stories of their losses, and on the social consequences of talking about loss or remaining silent about it. She has studied the usefulness of expressive writing for returning soldiers and their spouses. Currently she is studying how depressed individuals behave in their everyday lives, and especially how they talk with the people around them. She writes the blog “Embracing the Dark Side” for Psychology Today. She is also a therapist in training. To Listen to Jenna on Open to Hope Radio
Articles:
Speaking of Grief: Tips for Listening to Others’ Grief
This is the last in a 3-part series about how to talk about grief, and how to listen to others who are grieving. The following is advice for those who are willing to try to listen to and support others who are grieving. 1. Be there for the person. One of my favorite quotations is, “life is mostly froth and bubbles, two things stand like stone, kindness in another’s trouble, courage in your own1.” If you have ever undergone a personal crisis, you know that your friends’ and loved ones’ support and understanding can be a light in the darkness of […]
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Speaking of Grief: Tips for Talking About Your Grief
This is the second in a 3-part series about how to speak about one’s grief. Listeners are alert to cues that you aren’t going to be a huge burden to them. Here’s how you can send them the message that you aren’t going to burden them excessively in a number of ways, while still sharing your story. 1. Don’t rehash the same negative story again and again. Research evidence is clear that rumination – going over the same sad feelings and thoughts again and again in an attempt to analyze and understand them – makes people feel worse. Going over […]
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Speaking of Grief: Can We Really Be Honest?
This is the first in a 3-part series about how grievers speak about their losses. Mourning traditions around the world, from Hindu traditions to Jewish and Christian traditions, provide structured time for mourners to lament their losses in the presence of supportive friends and family. In all cultures, too, there is a statute of limitations on the expression of grief. Weeks or months after a loss, grievers are expected to have rejoined ordinary life. Listeners are less willing to hear about a griever’s pain. One of the most difficult things for those grievers who remain in raw pain is how […]
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