Selected Tweets, March 21-27

From Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week,

On Care Giving and Hospice:

• Stan Goldberg: Prostate Cancer, Research Funding, and Male Vanity http://bit.ly/adNDU8
  
  
• @NHPCO_news: What Health Care Legislation Means for the End-of-Life Community http://bit.ly/9WSzTx
  
  
• CNN: Aging Issues Can be Tougher on Gays http://bit.ly/akZdLh #LGBT
  
  
• @DianaSebzda: Great School Project Teaches Kids how to Companion Dying Patients in Hospice http://tinyurl.com/yft4onb
  
  
• Siblings resolve conflicts to care for aging parents http://bit.ly/aIn8R5

On Spirituality:

• @Selfhealingexpr Prayer Wall: Post Your Concerns, Support Others with Good Thoughts and Prayers http://bit.ly/x6p8m
  
  
• World of Psychology: Research Suggests Spirituality and Prayer Relieve Stress http://bit.ly/dry6tI 

On Understanding, Managing Grief: 

• Mary Zemites: The Healing Power of Forgiveness http://bit.ly/9oKRtY
  
  
• Grief Finds Connection, Healing Online - http://bit.ly/9eaCTi #cnn
  
  
• Steve Harris: Stuffing Emotions Isn’t a Good Grief Strategy http://bit.ly/dpsJla
  
  
• David Fireman: Understanding Anniversary Reactions http://bit.ly/cgqCU7
  
  
• Jeanne Dennis: How We Process Sudden, Traumatic Grief & Loss http://huff.to/atHiUJ
  
  
• @Selfhealingexpr Parental Grief in the Wake of Homicide http://bit.ly/b41pDQ
  
  
• Friends Need Permission to Help & Guidance on How http://bit.ly/bDxGn5
   
• Students of AMF Offers Grief Support for College Kids http://bit.ly/aWAjuG
  
  
• Support Group Helps College Students with Grief, Terminally Ill Loved Ones http://bit.ly/9LuvpA
  
  
• Campus Organization Offers Group Support to Students after Loss of a Loved One http://bit.ly/dmFIxL
  
  
• Grief, Schoolwork Challenging to Balance http://bit.ly/993mzg
  
  
• Kids Who Lose Parents Still Grieve as Adults - CNN.com http://bit.ly/afqmZy
  
  
• Bereaved Teens Answer: What to Say When Asked about Their Loss | Hello Grief http://bit.ly/bfao6z 
   
• Grieving Over Job Loss: Allowed and Necessary http://bit.ly/cJy29M 

On Pet Loss:       

• It's Important to Grieve When a Pet Dies http://bit.ly/dCETOf
  
  
• @Selfhealingexpr Finding Help with Pet Loss http://bit.ly/dsHACH 

National College Student Grief Awareness Week - April 18-24, 2010

This announcement comes to us from Staci Barfield, Executive Director of National Students of AMF:

The United States Census Bureau estimates that 18.4 million students enrolled in American colleges in 2009. And we know that 25% of college students are within twelve months of having experienced the loss of a loved one. So that means more than 4.5 million college students are grieving during a time in their lives that is already academically, socially, and developmentally challenging.

Whether you are grieving, know someone who is, or just want to help spread the word about how together we cope with grief, you are invited to take part in National College Student Grief Awareness Week, April 18 to 24, 2010.

Goals for the week are to raise awareness about the prevalence and impact of coping with the illness or death of a loved one during college, and to spread the word about National Students of AMF.

The mission of National Students of AMF is to support college students grieving the illness or death of a loved one.

To learn more about the organization or how you can get involved, visit www.studentsofamf.org or call 919.803.6728.  Contact Executive Director Staci Barfield via e-mail at staci@studentsofamf.org.

Selected Tweets, March 14 - March 20

From Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week
On Understanding, Managing Grief:

• Kelly Buckley via Open to Hope: Ten Ways to Comfort the Grieving Heart http://bit.ly/9IHX8d 
   
• @soaringspirits: Send widowers who need peer support to SSLF's Widower Match Pgm http://bit.ly/bJtLqo
  
  
• Each Name is a Stephen to Someone... http://bit.ly/cprGTj
  
  
• All of Us Grieve Differently | Sharon Wegscheider-Cruse http://bit.ly/cjjh4b
  
  
• Stella Wichman: When a grandchild dies, the anguish of grandparents is doubled http://bit.ly/9hA88j
  
  
• New Doggone Grief board game helps all ages verbally communicate grief emotions http://bit.ly/dCvsuJ 

On Suicide Loss:

• @afspnational: http://bit.ly/aPXjOi Searching for solutions in the wake of suicide #Cornell
  
  
• @afspnational: RT @TeenScreen How to ID teens at risk for suicide http://bit.ly/9lPH7E

On Living with a Disability:

• @landofpuregold: Psychiatric Service Dogs Helping Our War Veterans http://bit.ly/aja01l
  
  
• @NHPCO_news: Moving video from Scott Newport about his son Evan http://bit.ly/bwU6Fw
  
  
• @ebertchicago Kid with right attitude; paraplegic who can act. I'll look for him. http://j.mp/c2DHj9
  
  
• @PetsforPatriots: Blind cat = certified therapy pet, shows all the "ability" in disability! http://ow.ly/1oqiZ

On Hospice Care:

• @NHPCO_news: Jane Brody "When the Only Hope Is a Peaceful Ending" http://nyti.ms/9gEO02

• @AliveHospice: Nice summary of interview w/ 2 @AliveHospice grief counselors http://bit.ly/dvBfNc
  
  
• @DianaSebzda: Yay! ADEC is sponsoring @slashcoleman 's movie on grief and loss. Preview @ http://tinyurl.com/ykyfnkr
  
  
• Resources Center on LGBT Aging to be Created http://tinyurl.com/ygtnzb

  On Pet Loss:  

• @peternity: Share with others: create an online pet memorial for your beloved pet. http://tinyurl.com/lk826p
  

• @FDAanimalhealth Dog Bone Dangers http://bit.ly/bH4W3c
  
  
• @USATODAY Pet owners spare no expense to bury their beloved animals http://usat.me?37875732
  
  
• Sid Korpi: How to Support a Friend through Pet Loss http://bit.ly/b4RJ0V 
  
  
• Karen Litzinger: Proactive, Holistic Approach to Coping With Pet Loss http://bit.ly/dlTMQH
  
  
• The Moment After: Surviving Pet Loss http://bit.ly/b5mfzu

Continuing Education: Forthcoming Conferences and Webinars

Conferences:

• 17th Annual National Bereavement Teleconference, Hospice Foundation of America (HFA), Living with Grief®: Cancer and End-of-Life Care, March 24, 2010, 10:30 – 1:00 p.m. AZ Time; 1:30 - 4:00 p.m. EDT
   
• 32nd Annual Conference, Association for Death Education and Counseling (ADEC), Death, Dying and Bereavement: It’s All about the Stories, April 6-10, 2010, Kansas City, MO 

• 2010 Spring Conference, Arizona Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (AHPCO),  May 14, 2010, Tempe, AZ
  
  
• 14th Annual National Alliance for Grieving Children Symposium, June 24-26, 2010, Cleveland, Ohio 

ADEC Webinars (The Association for Death Education and Counseling):

• The Impact of Medicine on Dying in America, with Clint Moore III, MDiv, PhD, FT,Wednesday, March 17, 2010, 10 - 11:30 a.m. AZ Time; Noon - 1:30 p.m. Central Time

• Cultural Perspectives on Dying, Death and Grief,  with Paul Rosenblatt, PhD, Wednesday, April 21, 2010, 10 -11:30 a.m. AZ Time; Noon - 1:30 p.m. Central Time

• Lifting the Fog: An introduction to Complicated Grief Treatment, with Katherine Shear, MD, Wednesday, May 19, 2010, 10 - 11:30 a.m. AZ Time; Noon - 1:30 p.m. Central Time

• Ethical Practice in Grief Counseling (Part 1): Competence, Consent, Confidentiality,  with Louis Gamino, PhD, FT, Wednesday, June 16, 2010, 10 -11:30 a.m. AZ Time; Noon - 1:30 p.m. Central Time

Selected Tweets, March 7 - March 13

From Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week
On Hospice Care:

• HospiceGSO Common Myths About Hospice Care http://ow.ly/1eZUr 

• Moving #hospice documentary: Except For Six http://bit.ly/bYLnuG
    
  
• Hospice bereavement services help public mourn tragic losses http://ow.ly/1qfM5Z
  
  
• @kevinmd: Are hospice patients really abandoned by their primary care doctors? http://bit.ly/ETDer
   
• ANA to offer diversity awareness data base to better understand pts’ cultures http://bit.ly/dlKmFU  

 On Caregiving:

• Wonderful RT @CarolDOdell What Caregiving Taught Me « Mothering Mother and More http://bit.ly/aBruBG  

• Tough Conversations with Aging Parents: Q&A w/ Caregiving.com's D Brown http://bit.ly/d7aw1K

•  Caring for the Caregiver (Huffington Post): http://bit.ly/d2dMCJ 

• Why Caregiving is Not for Everyone : The Eldercare Support Group http://bit.ly/aKU9SR

• On "Therapeutic Fibbing"RT @ElderCareRN: Taking Care of The Folks http://bit.ly/c8Bstn

•  Letting go of my father-Atlantic column detailing decline of a parent http://bit.ly/98t8kC  

•  @ElderCareRN: When parents Forget. Pls see MY response and then Dr. Hamilton's response re: his Mom driving. http://tinyurl.com/ycfuk5w 

•  Priceless! RT @ALZHEIMERSread: Alzheimer's and the Dreaded Bowel Movement http://bit.ly/bOVyaB  

On Child Loss, Sibling Grief:

• Bereaved Mom Kelly Buckley on Seeing Loss Through Your Child's Eyes http://bit.ly/bqjQLm

• Sibling Loss & Child Grief: Kelly Buckley on Answering The Tough Questions http://bit.ly/9kL96j

• Kelly Buckley: Give bereaved kids the healing power of remembrance, http://bit.ly/97heab

• Bereaved Mom Kelly Buckley on modeling good mourning for her surviving child: http://bit.ly/b7CF1r
  
  
• Helping surviving child return from sadness to happiness http://bit.ly/cRlFDQ 
  

• New post of Single Dad's Town: Facing Death Together http://is.gd/9XRYG
  
  
• Loss of a child is devastating. Don't push, don't give up, take time to heal www.GrievingDads.com

 On Suicide Loss:

•  Teen Suicide: Experts tell what to look for, how to prevent it http://bit.ly/d7TuWQ

•  How to Identify Suicide Risk Before It's Too Late - US News & World Report http://bit.ly/deHVcE

•  Suicide needs compassionate response, not blame: http://bit.ly/deSlUn 

On Understanding, Managing Grief:

• Talking openly about loss, accepting what others see in us aids healing http://bit.ly/dk3Pl9

• Very touching! Alisha Krukowski on The Beauty of Falling Apart | Hello Grief http://bit.ly/a7vULe

• Grieving for the Future | Loving Grief http://bit.ly/dbOjVV

• In grief, being there for others strengthens us too http://bit.ly/aiwBto

• Persistent Dreams in Grief http://bit.ly/cxGjEO

• JiJi McCarron on Grief: The Profound Presence of an Absence http://bit.ly/dzK6Ol

• Appropriate Expectations You Can Have for Yourself in Grief | LegacyConnect http://bit.ly/bJSzdE

• Virtual Grief - the Role of Internet Support http://tinyurl.com/yhwrt72  

• Courage is... http://bit.ly/adSVoK

Selected Tweets, February 28 - March 6

Selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

@AliveHospice: Hospice chaplain provides spiritual support even when patient is unconscious, http://bit.ly/bKkZW2

 @ElderCareRN: Muhammad Ali's devoted wife Lonnie and three others share their remarkable caregiving stories http://bit.ly/bOZwo

@georgiaslegacy: Role shift for teen & therapy dog since Riley diagnosed with cancer, http://bit.ly/c2F0EK
 
@DianaSebzda: NHPCO (@HospiceAction) now has its own channel on YouTube! http://tinyurl.com/ydoj58n

Yay!! Guided Imagery Is Winging Its Way To Our Troops in Iraq & Afghanistan! http://bit.ly/9hbwJX

From One Who Knows RT @KSBuckley: Ten Ways to Comfort a Grieving Heart: http://bit.ly/awfvuB 

@hospice_news: Palliative Care Grand Rounds Now Up!! http://bit.ly/909Yk3 

@afspnational: How to Spot the Warning Signs of Suicide: http://bit.ly/bpATqh
 
 @afspnational: In honor of #worldbookday here is a list of books on coping after a suicide http://bit.ly/19BBHM 

@lesmorgan: Best books for dementia caregivers http://bit.ly/aIrt1h 

CNN: Online groups help parents who've lost kids to suicide http://bit.ly/bJXnWN
 
@peternity If something happens to you, what happens to your pet(s)? Plan ahead http://tinyurl.com/yaldopb 

Excellent read:How far is too far to go for a sick pet? http://bit.ly/dtn4jm 

@DrMartyBecker: My good friend @DrOz on the tragedy at Sea World http://bit.ly/do0b2W 

@Selfhealingexpr: Memorializing a Cherished Pet by @griefhealing. Very touching: http://bit.ly/HySVs 

@openculture: Opera in the Fruit & Veggie Market This made my day.... http://bit.ly/a3Lir5
 
@ksbuckley Gratitude In Grief: Are you Pecking at the Kick Plate of Life? http://bit.ly/d48kAF
 

For Widows, Widowers and Single Parents

Single Dads Town - Bill McLeod's Web site is designed to support single parents through the often challenging job of raising children without a partner.  Having lost his wife (first to alcohol, then to divorce, and finally to death) Bill is a dedicated father of two children who has turned his challenging experiences of loss and transition into an effort to assist other single dads (and moms) to become successful parents. Bill says he created his Web site for three reasons: to support single parents across the country as they face the challenges, fears and joys of single parenthood; to inspire and motivate parents to be excellent role models for their children; and to provide a source of services, advice and resources to help single parents organize and balance their lives.  The site includes a Blog hosted by a team of "expert" weekly guest bloggers, enabling visitors to hear from other single parents, as well as an e-mail newsletter.  In addition, Bill hosts a weekly radio program on Saturday mornings on CBS Radio, Helping Single Parents Succeed.

Today's Widow   After a great 21-year marriage, Robin Craig lost her 43-year-old husband suddenly and unexpectedly.  Shortly thereafter she heard her own voice telling her that she had to help other widows, and with her blog she aims to do just that. Her various blog entries offer insights "to widows, widowers, those who are married to prepare them for losing a spouse, and singles contemplating marriage. Those who are divorced will benefit, as well, because they too have lost their spouses."  Robin says she is "today's widow surviving in today's world, and I am honored to have the opportunity to share and learn with you as we travel the bumpy road called 'widowhood.' The episodes of life afford a time for growth and an opportunity to reevaluate our position in it. We must ultimately decide if we are on the correct path and alter it if we are not." Four years into her widowhood, today Robin is a successful TV producer with two national daytime Emmys to her credit.  Her message to all, she says, "is to be the very best you can be no matter what life brings."

Soaring Spirits Loss Foundation (SSLF) is an inclusive, non-denominational organization working to provide a national network of support for anyone grieving the loss of someone they love, with a special emphasis on those whose spouse or partner has died.  Its focus is on hope and healing, offering its members the needed tools and resources to rebuild their lives in the aftermath of the death of a loved one.  This special community offers a variety of outstanding, peer-based online programs for those who have suffered the loss of a spouse, partner or significant other, including the following:

• Widow Match - An on-line based support group that matches widows of similar circumstances for supportive e-mail correspondence. Matches will generally be within ten years of each other in age, will have lost their husbands within six months of each other, and are in the same situation regarding having children.
  
• Widow’s Voice Blog - Seven widowed people share their unique view on widowed life -- every day of the week. Visit us for a daily dose of hope and understanding.
  
• Grief Chats - This YouTube-based program features short film clips on topics related to losing a loved one. Written and read by SSLF founder and director Michele Neff Hernandez, each real-life story begins with loss and ends with hope. In this clip, the first in the series, Michelle introduces the program: