Finding Your Way Through Sudden Loss and Adversity
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Dedication This book, created for those who are grieving the loss of a loved one or facing adversity, is dedicated to my younger brother, Graham Stewart, who died suddenly at the age of 19. Healing from the death of a loved one is an incredible journey. And although I've always strived for empathy and compassion towards those in mourning, it has taken my own recent loss to make me realize now how little I understood about the intense sorrow and anguish one experiences until they are able to reach the point where healing begins. My brother Graham was a kind and gentle soul. Blessed with a natural humor and quick wit, he invited laughter with impeccably timed jokes and a brilliant smile. Graham was smart, good looking, and athletic. He loved life and adored his family. I know that despite his tragic death, my brother would have wanted our family to heal and forge ahead. Our sadness has rendered this difficult, but with the help of family, friends, faith, and great resources like Hold the Door For Others, we are learning to do just that. We wish to celebrate a life and honor a memory by proudly dedicating this resource to Graham. We hope that you, like our family, can find solace within its pages. The Hold The Door For Others Team would like to thank Lindsay Haley and the Stewart family for sharing their kind and inspirational words. “The Only Distance Between Your Dreams and Your Reality is You!” Welcome Welcome to our Family. The fact that you are taking the time to read this is a small step toward a long journey of healing and growth. I want to let you know how sorry I personally am that you have experienced loss or adversity. I know it may seem weird to hear that a stranger is personally sorry for your loss, but I am because I too lost someone suddenly. I lost my dad on September 11th and although the loss, accident, sickness, or adversity you are facing may be very different, there are connections and similarities. I will share more of my story with you as we progress, but I wanted you to know that what you are about to read comes from my heart and then from the research and experience our team has been learning from over the past 4 years. It is likely that you have been experiencing a range of strong emotions from deep sadness, to anger, to guilt, to sorrow. If you lost someone, you may even experience periods of relief and even happiness when you take a minute to remember funny things that your loved one may have done. I am here to offer you some very practical ways to live with your loss and believe it or not, one day grow as a result of the experience. As you will learn to grow, loss is a very personal experience and it can get a bit complicated. All I am here to do is to help guide you in the right direction. I encourage you to read as much as you can with an open mind when you feel up to it. I am writing this for you and because I whole heartedly believe that if you learn some basic concepts and challenge yourself a little you will be able to honor your loved one, heal in a healthy manner, and be able to grow through your experience. You are free to read this or leave it alone and come back to it, or to give it to someone else, or even throw it out. All I ask is that you give it at least one real chance. Take one real chance at connecting with me and believing in what I have to say. I have seen a lot of people go a lot of different directions when sudden loss and traumatic events happen. Although there is no “right” way to grieve or heal, there are more healthy ways that will allow you to feel better on a more consistent basis and lay a strong platform for your future health. I want to apologize in advance for talking about the future so soon. My guess is that the future may not even been something you want to even consider right now, and right now that is completely understandable. I will work my hardest to provide you with the best practices, the latest research, and I will pull in insights and writings from the best people I know in any field that I feel will help you in your journey. In the next page or so I will provide you with an outline of what to expect on our journey together. In this first page I have one objective and that is to try and invite you to understand that even though I do not know you personally, I can help you help yourself, and I will put all of my heart and energy into doing what I can to do so. Unfortunately, we are part of a family that no one asks to be part of. It’s the family of people who have experienced unexpected or sudden loss. I want to invite you to eventually become a member of another family that I am very proud of, and that is the family of people who have lived with loss and grown through the experience. – 2 – Copyright © 2006, Hold The Door For OthersTM, Inc. If you find a way to trust the person who is sitting in front of his computer right now in Center City Philadelphia, I will find a way to trust that you will take a chance on me and read these words with an open mind and walk with me on this journey. Welcome to our family. Please make yourself at home, put your feet up, and relax. We have a long walk ahead of us, but we will get where we want to go with some challenges and a lot of hard work. So, let’s take our first step together and begin by learning what we can expect in the following pages. Warm Regards, Rob Robert J. Fazio, PhD President and Co-Founder Hold The Door For Others, Inc. www.HOLDTHEDOOR.com DAD - 1-4-3 “Surviving Loss Happens. Thriving Despite Loss is Your Choice. Make the Choice to Thrive!” – 3 – Copyright © 2006, Hold The Door For OthersTM, Inc. Finding Your Way Through Sudden Loss and Adversity Our First Step.................................................................................................................................7 Hold The Door Philosophies .................................................................................11 I. Living With Loss Doorway 1: Lessons on Sudden Loss .........................................................................................13 Interactive Exercise: My Loss Line........................................................................14 Sudden Loss Timetable ..........................................................................................16 Healthy Hints on Responding to Loss and Adversity.............................................17 Doorway 2: Understanding and Managing Responses to Sudden Loss or Trauma..............23 Jim Burke, PhD, Mitch Abrams, PhD, Jason Briggs, M.A., and Jason Ong, PhD Introduction to Stress and Anxiety.........................................................................26 When Things Move Beyond Grief ..........................................................................29 Doorway 3: The Process of Living With Loss and Adversity (Self-Connect, Self-Care, and Self-Challenge) .....................................................................................................33 Self-Connect – Jennifer Page, PhD..........................................................................34 Self-Care ................................................................................................................42 Self-Challenge........................................................................................................45 Growth STEPS .......................................................................................................48 Doorway 4: Healing and Feeling ................................................................................................53 Healing With Feeling.............................................................................................59 Focus on the Tasks of Daily Living: Resisting Intrusive Thoughts .......................65 Jack Lesyck, PhD Doorway 5: Families, Children, and Living with Sudden and Traumatic Loss ....................69 Diana Salvador, PhD II. Growing Through Loss and Adversity Doorway 6: Growth Through Loss and Adversity ...................................................................75 What has Lead Some of the Families of September 11th to Grow?........................76 Doorway 7: What Do You Need to Grow Through Loss and Adversity ................................79 The OTHERS(S) Model..........................................................................................79 The ORCI ...............................................................................................................83 Doorway 8: Stories of Growth ....................................................................................................91 Breanna Winder, M.A., Jennifer Page, PhD, Lauren Jenkins, and Lauren Fazio – 5 – Copyright © 2006, Hold The Door For OthersTM, Inc. Doorway 9: Write Your Story of Growth................................................................................145 Breanna Winder, M.A. III. Preparing for Loss Doorway 10: Preparing for Loss and Adversity .....................................................................151 Practical Tips on Preparing For Loss.................................................................153 Helpful Hints on Managing Your Responses to Images and Media ....................154 Doorway 11: Hold The Door For Others.................................................................................157 Appendix A – Deep Breathing and Imagery ...........................................................................159 Appendix B – Honoring Your Loved One ...............................................................................163