Grief and Loss Services

DEALING WITH GRIEF

Grieving usually begins soon after the diagnosis of a life-limiting illness is made. Patients grieve for the changes that are taking place within the body, for the loss of the ability to do the things they can no longer do and for the shortened time they have with those they love. Loved ones grieve not only for what they see happening to the patient, but also for the emptiness they are already beginning to feel.

Grief is natural. It is our human response to change or loss. It can be painful.

How the pain of grief moves through the body, mind, and soul is unique to each person.

Sometimes you don't know why you feel empty, hurt, or sad. It helps just to say the feeling out loud and feel the feeling. Talk to someone. Call your social worker or grief counselor and say, "Help me understand these feelings. Where are they coming from?"

Let Hospice & Palliative Care Charlotte Region be a resource for you and your family. Services include:

• Programs for all age groups - children, older teens, adults, and senior adults.
• Regular correspondence and conversations with a grief counselor.
• Short-term individual counseling, including referrals for more intensive therapy when appropriate.
• Support groups (both on-going and time-limited). Our support groups are educational and supportive in nature. They are not intended to be therapy sessions. Participation is limited to one group at a time though people may attend sequential groups for up to one year.
• Educational forums for those who want to learn more about coping with their grief in a one-session workshop environment.
• Annual community service of remembrance.
• A resource library which includes current and past issues of our Bereavement Bulletin.
• Chameleon's Journey, an overnight grief camp for children ages 7 - 16.

 

Grief has a direct and sometimes adverse affect on job performance, interpersonal relationships, and personal well-being. Grief is a process that is not completed in a finite period of time. Therefore, this distinctive service of Hospice & Palliative Care Charlotte Region is extended to family members and other significant persons both before and after the death of a hospice patient.

GRIEF COUNSELING

The goal of grief counseling is to facilitate a safe and healing environment for people who are adjusting to a significant loss in their lives. Our services are available to those who have survived the loss of a loved one, with the goal of enabling persons to discover, or perhaps rediscover, their own inner resources which allow them to integrate their loss into a meaningful future.

We employ a healthy perspective that is based on the following principles:

• Pain and loss are a normal part of life and grieving is a healthy way of taking care of ourselves.
• Grieving persons have the right and responsibility to grieve in their own way, to interpret their loss, to make choices that are right for them and to determine the quality and direction for their lives.
• Everyone is respected and encouraged to honor their diverse values and traditions.

GRIEF SUPPORT

We encourage you to join one of our support groups to learn more about the grieving process. These groups consist of eight sessions, combining the basic elements of grief education with the support of group members. Many lasting friendships have been formed from groups like this over the years as people have learned the importance of providing and receiving support from those with similar experiences. Groups will be offered at:

• Hospice & Palliative Care Charlotte Region--South Charlotte office
  • Call 704.335.4334
• Levine & Dickson Hospice House
  • Call 704.335.4334
• Hospice & Palliative Care Lincoln County
  • Call 704.732.6146

Day and evening groups are available beginning in September, 2010 and again in February, 2011.  We hope you will consider joining one of our groups this year.  We are confident that the experience will become a significant part of your grief journey. 
 
While there are many benefits to joining a grief support group, one of the best reasons was stated by a member of our winter group at Levine & Dickson Hospice House,

"This is a place where I am normal."

A sense of normalcy is one of the gifts the members of our five winter groups were able to give to each other.  They also shared laughter and tears as they listened to each other tell their grief stories.  These experiences, shared in a safe and trusting environment, are an important part of our eight-week support series, "Grief--The Reluctant Journey".

Registration for the grief support groups is required.  For South Charlotte and LDHH groups, please call 704.335.4334 or email cummingsg@hpccr.org.  For groups in Lincolnton, please call 704.732.6146.

For more information about dealing with grief, visit our Resource Library.

For tips on how to support someone who is grieving, click here. 

 

ALZHEIMER AND DEMENTIA CAREGIVER SUPPORT

You are invited to attend our support group for caregivers of patients suffering from Alzheimer disease and dementia.  This support group is for caregivers who are new to caregiving, those anticipating caregiving, and those for whom caregiving has become a way of life.  The topic of discussion each week will be navigating the challenges that family caregivers face when caring for a loved one with Alzheimer disease, other dementia, or chronic illnesses.

For more information, view the information sheet or contact Gerri Cummings at 704.335.4334.