Surviving the Holidays After a Loved One's Death

Holiday "survival" seminars are being held across the nation, offering practical help and encouragement for people in bereavement. Contact: Joseph Northcut, Church Initiative, 800-395-5755 ext 245, jnorthcut@churchinitiative.org WAKE FOREST, N.C.  Christian Newswire/ -- People who've experienced the death of a loved one often face Thanksgiving and Christmas with dread. But grieving people can find actionable strategies and encouragement to make it through the 2010 holiday season at GriefShare's Surviving the Holidays one-time seminars across the nation. The Surviving the Holidays seminars, held at hundreds of local churches, begin with a video presentation featuring advice from respected Christian counselors and teachers on how to survive the holiday season, and featuring real-life stories of people who've experienced the challenges of the holiday season while grieving a death. "Hearing whom other people lost and how they managed to get through gave me hope," said a holiday seminar attendee. Another found comfort in knowing "that what I’m experiencing is okay." The video presentation offers practical suggestions on how to handle hard-hitting emotions during the holiday season, what to do about family traditions, how to scale back on activities and holiday preparations, and where to find the strength to go on. "I learned that it's okay not to carry on every tradition, and it's okay to cut back on invitations," shared a seminar attendee. After the video is a facilitated small group discussion time where attendees discuss concepts learned on the video and share their specific concerns. A participant in Charlotte, NC, found encouragement in learning "that 'moving forward' is different from 'moving on.'" Each seminar attendee receives a Survival Guide containing over 30 days of short, devotional readings that target specific concerns faced by grieving people. The guides also include helpful charts and articles to help attendees create a holiday plan and learn how to have a more manageable, healthy approach to the busy season. At the GriefShare Surviving the Holidays website, people in grief can enter their zip code into a searchable database to find a nearby holiday seminar: www.griefshare.org/holidays. The website also contains downloadable holiday-centric articles and helpful video clips featuring expert teaching and personal testimonies on holiday survival after grief. About GriefShare GriefShare, a ministry of Church Initiative, Wake Forest, NC, is a network of over 7,000 locations equipped to offer grief recovery support groups. A searchable database of groups is found at www.griefshare.org.