Wikis tagged with Grief-and-loss

Helping our children to process the tragedy in Boston.   It is no surprise that one of the most-shared quotes in the wake of the horrific bombing in Boston was wisdom from the ever-reliable Mr. Rogers, who said: “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’ “   I count myself among the fortunate in that a.) I was not personally affected by the bombings in that I do not know anyone who was hurt or injured and b.) My son is too young for me to have to address it with him. He’s...

Resource Thread   Hi! This is a resource thread intended to be a compilation of helpful MDC discussions, Mothering articles and member-recommended website links dealing with pregnancy and birth loss. Please PM the forum's moderator to nominate a helpful thread or website for inclusion. MDC Threads Resources for those who have lost a child Suggestions for families and friends of grieving parents Honoring our babies Exactly what to expect with a miscarriage Mothering Articles Solitary Sadness: The Need to Grieve Miscarriage My Last Baby Carrying On After a...

In the summer of 2008, the world of foster care found my family and I.  We weren’t seeking it out; we had two little ones, a boy who was nearly 3 and one who was 9 months old.  But when I happened to be in the right place at the right time when the daughter of a friend of mine was removed, I volunteered to take her home with me.  I called my husband, asking him to leave work early and meet a social worker at our house.  We had no idea how much that moment would deeply impact our lives.  We didn’t know what the future would hold.  We knew what the social workers told us, and what we saw...

This resource list intended to be a compilation of helpful MDC threads, Mothering articles and member-recommended website links dealing with grief and loss.  MDC Discussion Threads Remembering Our Loved Ones: A Memorial Mothering Articles The Art of Grieving Gracefully It Won't Hurt Forever: Guiding Your Child Through Trauma  Raging Grief The Life and Death of a Hurricane Grief Tea Accepting the Gift: Grief and Loss His Way  My Mother, Myself Charlotte's Grace (stillbirth) My Morning Glory (neonatal death) Helpful Website Links National Mental Health Information Center:...

By Carol McMurrich Issue 141 - March/April 2007 Tomorrow, my daughter, Charlotte, will turn two. On the eve of this anniversary, I find myself contemplating my mothering journey, humbly marveling at how such a tiny child has changed me so profoundly and permanently. I am deeply thankful for the opportunity to mother Charlotte, though some might find that surprising and unbearably sad. On the day of her birth, as her lovely body began its descent into my birth canal, Charlotte died. Her umbilical cord, which was wrapped around her body and tucked under her arm, was clamped when my...

  Lily Lynette Furneaux-Wolfenbarger passed away on November 20, 2010, while in the care of her stepmother, Renee King.  Lily, born on May 14, 2008, died from blunt force trauma resulting from being struck in the head by an unknown object after being sexually assaulted by multiple objects.  Renee King, allegedly the only one present in the home at the time of Lily’s death, is being charged with felony murder, first-degree child abuse, and first-degree criminal sexual conduct (The Macomb Daily).  Lily’s mother, Lauren Furneaux, has waged a battle to gain awareness of Lily’s story,...

  Thank you for this guest post from The Pan-Massachusetts Challenge. As she watched her young daughter battle cancer, Janet O’Shea knew she needed to do more to help others. Diagnosed at just 2 years old with a rare form of cancer called Atypical Teratoid Rhabdoid Tumors (AT/RT), Charlotte O’Shea spent many of her days in and out of hospitals going through intensive chemotherapy and experimental treatment. That meant Janet O’Shea also spent days and days in the hospital. She became close with other parents who came to Dana-Farber Cancer Institute for their children to get...

by Sarah Juliusson of www.MamaRenew.ca – Find Mama Renew on Facebook. Gratitude to Jenny Rough and her All Things Mothering post – Mothers Day Prayer.  I started writing this post on Mothers Day, and had to set it aside, not yet ready to write. I too found myself in a difficult place on Mothers Day, feeling acutely our miscarriage five years ago on Mother’s Day.  After five years, I have found that grief comes in waves – there are times when I can hardly believe we were ever pregnant with a 3rd child, when our family of two parents and two boys feels just right.  And then, every once...

Two beautiful ladies: Kat and Lexi Update: I am very sad to report that little Lexi passed away from leukemia on Feb 10th at the age of 3. The family requests that donations be made to the Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara in lieu of flowers. Thank you to Jessica Mireles for contributing this article. This work was originally posted on Jessica’s blog–check it out at Allegro non tanto. My friend Kat is waiting. She waits while she puts the dirty laundry into the washing machine, she waits while she scrubs the kitchen sink, and she waits as she bends over to pick up...

By way of onomatopoeia, the very word yogini sounds like the image of Jeannine Parvati Baker in full-flowering asana mastery: lithe stems curling around o-so-full center of heartful breath. At once elfin and elegant. A bold design, a weaver of words. And gone far too soon. Jeannine would have been sixty-three today. Prefacing an extensive interview with her, Michael Mendizza writes that Jeannine was “a yogini, midwife, herbalist, published author, and poet. She was also an international activist on the matters of homebirth, unassisted childbirth and newborn rights issues. A pioneer in...

  I think I, like everybody else was deeply disturbed by the recent Batman opening night gunman rampage.  Immediately it erupted into talk about gun control and how it should be increased (no guns for the crazy guy) or decreased (more guns for the crowd) and I think…well, I think everybody missed the point.  Then again, maybe I am just crazy. The whole ordeal and the outrageous amount of people killed and injured didn’t make me worry about guns.  It made me think about MEDIA and the influence it has in our lives.  Not just media but violence in general.  If you are like me you...

Eleven years since 9/11. Eleven years ago last night, our daughter Eve — then ten years old — was so excited that the next morning she was going to wake up by herself for the very first time, using the radio alarm clock we had given her for the occasion. She chose the station carefully (classical was it? maybe soft pop?), but when the radio clicked on at six a.m. in her Los Angeles bedroom it wasn’t music that woke her up. The second plane had just hit its target. Nobody yet had clarity on what was happening, let alone the news media. A fragmented noise skein of unfathomable facts,...

When talking to children about tragic events, understanding individual temperament can be a great help. In my earlier 9/11 post, I focused mainly on two important aspects for the parent: the fundamental need for some measure of self-possession and calm amidst outer events a level of honesty and clarity in speaking to the child about the events that is not the norm in our culture Especially related to that second point — honesty and clarity for the child — I want to dive a bit deeper and look at the importance of knowing your individual child, and letting that understanding guide...

And then the carefree child, grateful for the experience of being—the joys of learning and sharing with others, the richness of growth and discovery—dashes across the beckoning bridge and on to new things on the other side. The End # # The digital version of our March–April 2011 issue will go live later today. This issue will be Mothering‘s last—the magazine is no longer being published in print or digital format. Here’s how our publisher, Peggy O’Mara, put it on her blog. After 35 years of making magazines, the staff at Mothering is obviously deeply saddened by this...

When he was 18 years old, Tony Yarbough’s mother was murdered. So was his 12-year-old sister, and her 12-year-old friend. The grief of losing a mother and a sister to murder is unimaginable to me. But it’s possible that what Tony Yarbough is going through now is even worse. He’s in jail. For the murders of his mother and his sister. Tony Yarbough is innocent. A slight, soft-spoken young African-American man, Tony Yarbough was not given a fair trial. He wakes up and goes to sleep every night behind bars. Even though he committed no crime. He’s being held in Attica...

by Jake Aryeh Marcus Find Sustainable Mothering on Facebook and Jake on Twitter.Henry Granju died yesterday evening. His mother, Katie Allison Granju, author of Attachment Parenting: Instinctive Care for Your Baby and Young Child has been blogging about Henry and the circumstances that led to his death at her blog, MamaPundit. While I hope to write more about addiction, a condition from which even the most dedicated attachment parent may not be spared, today I want only to express deep sadness that a mother has lost her son.Here is a video by South African musician Johnny Clegg called...

WINNER HAS BEEN CHOSEN: Stacey! Today, guest blogger Allison Gilbert, author of the new book Parentless Parents: How the Loss of Our Mothers and Fathers Impacts the Way We Raise Our Children, shares an excerpt from her book about how losing her parents has spurred her on to take a more proactive, less reactive role in her own self-care. Instead of waiting for others to surprise, spoil, wine, dine and fete her, she susses out what she needs and then MAKES IT HAPPEN. I’m inspired. I really am. We’re also giving away a copy of her book. Here’s her book trailer: From Chapter 10:...

One month ago today, a baby named Fox Elijah King was born to an awesome & radical couple, my friends April & Morgan.  April had a normal, healthy pregnancy, prioritizing an already-stretched budget to eat whole foods; she labored & delivered Fox naturally even though her birth was hard & fast.  He was lovingly welcomed, breastfed & kept intact.  He had a safe sleeping spot near his mama & was held constantly; embraced with an allegiance that can only come from a mother who was totally thrilled with his existence, a woman who studied motherhood to learn the absolute best way to bring a...

Whenever I watch the reality TV show Giuliana & Bill, I tell my husband: “Their lives parallel ours!” (Well, except for the minor details that they are rich, famous, and beautiful.) She wants to live in L.A. He wants to live in Chicago. They go back and forth. I want to live in L.A. Ron wants to live in D.C. This winter, we’re going back and forth. They are experiencing infertility. We are experiencing infertility. She is concerned about what the hormone medication might do to her body; so am I. I hope she hooks up with Pulling Down the Moon in Chicago. I’d love for America to be able to...

She was a gorgeous dog. The color of an Irish Setter. The size of an American Eskimo. She had wispy fur at the corner of each floppy ear. More wisps on her front and hind legs, like a Golden Retriever. A few people who were knowledgeable about rare dog breeds would ask if she was a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever (she looked practically identical to one). But she wasn’t any of those fancy breeds. She was a mutt. I named her Callie, after California. I brought her home to my apartment in Santa Monica 13 years ago. She was a sweet, quiet puppy, yet also spunky. She didn’t walk; she...