Posts Tagged ‘grief’
How to Accompany Ourselves and Others in Grief || By Catherine Dockery, MA, Conscious Aging Facilitator
Feeling grief was impossible for me most of my life. I grew up in the middle of a very large family, My mom had absolutely no capacity to hold her own grief nor to recognize or welcome mine. I learned really quickly to be strong, to be independent and not too needy. In order to…
Read MoreAn American Experience of Death and Grief || By Lisa Martinez MA, ERYT 200-RYT 500
I have written posts in this series on various cultural approaches to death: Japanese rituals, Mexican/Meso-American rituals, Celtic rituals, Nigerian rituals, and Samoan/Pacific Islander rituals. I’m sure I could fill years with different posts covering rituals from thousands of other major cultures. Across the 195 recognized countries in the world, ethnologists and anthropologists have estimated…
Read MoreThe day you mourn and weep for another’s death … the Igbo community rituals of mourning || By Lisa Martinez, Affordable Counseling Intern for People House, ERYT 200-RYT 500
Continuing my exploration of various cultural mourning and grief rituals, for this post I’m featuring the story of my dear friend Maria who is from the Igbo ethnic group in Nigeria. The Igbo people form one of the largest people groups in Nigeria originating from Igboland, an area located in an eastern and western section…
Read MoreSex & Death || By Rick Garcia, Certified Sex/Cannabis Coach, LMT
I often write blogs about things that clients ask about, but this time I wanted to go with something a little more personal. This blog will be exactly what the title suggests, so please consider this to be your trigger warning and rightly so. I find it curious that the most natural aspects of life…
Read MoreThe Ancient Beauty of the Ofrenda: a grief ritual of the Día de Los Muertos || By Lisa Martinez, Affordable Counseling Intern for People House, ERYT 200-RYT 500
Continuing with my series about cultural death rituals, this month we explore the ritual about building an ofrenda on Día de Los Muertos, the Day of the Dead, on November 1st and 2nd. Although it is not that time of year, this is a wonderful time for me to remember because it is near my…
Read MoreMono No Aware: The Empathy of Things || By Lisa Martinez, Affordable Counseling Intern for People House, ERYT 200-RYT 500
‘To know mono no aware is to discern the power and essence, not just of the moon and the cherry blossoms, but of every single thing existing in this world, and to be stirred by each of them’. — Motoori Norinaga One of my favorite metaphors for the beauty but brevity of life is the…
Read MoreEverything is Possible II By Samantha Camerino, LCSW
In the Summer of 2021, my best friend died. To say ‘best friend’ doesn’t even do it justice – he was beyond that. I can’t even bother thinking of the words to better describe him, it would be futile. What I do know is that the pain I’ve experienced in moments of extreme grief only…
Read MoreReflections on Grief ll By Faye Maguire, MA, LAC
My mother died this year. What can prepare us for the loss of this most unique, and often, most fraught relationship? Her loss has caused me to ponder our relationship, and to think about her life, and the paths that shaped each of us. If I was skipping along, smelling the roses, and sometimes veering…
Read MoreMindfully Releasing 2020 and Welcoming the New Year! ll By Michelle LaBorde, MA, LPCC
Grateful and awake, ask what you need to know now. Say what you feel now. Love what you love now. ~ Mark Nepo For years I attended a church that offered an annual end of year ritual, a burning bowl ceremony. The event invited participants to release anything that felt important to let go of…
Read MoreWhen it’s Okay to Not Be Okay: Grieving and Loss in Uncertain Times ll By Megan Christine Anderson
This has been a strange summer, to say the least. Isolation, “social distancing,” lack of work, the threat of serious illness, the pressing need for social justice and equality, all swirling together in a cauldron that still contains all the other challenges we face on a daily basis, merely compounded by a new and ever-changing…
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