Grief and loss
Grief is a natural response to any loss, but often it is difficult to talk about. In this article we share some useful resources that we hope you will find helpful if you are experiencing grief.
Grief can be a difficult topic to talk about and is not only focused on death. In fact, grief over any loss is real and valid. We have shared a few links to useful resources below, which we hope will give you tips on healthy ways to process and move forward. This articles focuses on explaining your emotions to others, processing your loss and explaining the grieving process to a child.
Coping with Grief and Loss
Grief is a natural response to loss, but it is very rarely openly discussed. Grief and loss can be life changing and the more significant the loss, the more intense your grief will be. Find tips to help you process grief, move forward and more from this Help Guide >>
Explaining Grief
The Ball and the Box analogy is one of the best explanations of grief I have come across, on Twitter of all places! It can be really useful in explaining how you are feeling and why you are in pain, especially when talking to friends and family members who perhaps don’t understand what is going on for you emotionally. Visit the Hopeful Warrior website to find out more >>
Talking to your kids about grief
Children feel similar emotions to adults when they lose a loved one, but they may not be able to express them in the same way and may struggle to understand what happened.
Visit the Barnardos website for advice on talking to children about grief >>
What to do with supplies your family no longer needs
Some parents on the WellChild Family Tree have shared their frustration at not knowing what to do with remaining supplies after their child has passed away. They do not want valuable supplies like specialist equipment, feed and other consumables to go to waste.
There are a few things you can do with these supplies. Skiggle are a fantastic organisation, and their “market place” allows parents to give away any supplies they no longer need to other parents. Visit their website here >>
Some parents have found that local charities are thankful to receive any extra equipment or feed. Children’s hospices may be willing to take supplies. One parent has even said that their local animal shelter will happily take leftover specialist food.
Chloe French, Family Membership and Engagement
First published 6 October 2021
Last reviewed February 2022
Next review due January 2023
