And just like that 2024 has arrived. New beginnings, new potential, new opportunities. The New Year celebration on Whidbey Island is the polar bear plunge which is quite different from the Rose Parade festivities that I was accustomed to for the last 20 years. If you are grieving, or your holidays were full of heaviness you may not share in the new year sentiments. The transition from one year to the next may be filled with mixed emotions especially if you are leaving a year when your loved one was living and entering a new year without them. I entered 2024 with a heavy heart connected to the grief of close friends who experienced the death of loved ones during the holidays and grieving my own non-death losses. This year I skipped watching the plunge (I am not brave or crazy enough to go into the cold water). I felt the need to be quiet and reflect on my losses and connect with my inner compass. During this time, I reminded myself that heartbreak and hope can coexist. I can still feel my pain, support my friends in their grief, and look forward to the new beginnings and opportunities that 2024 will bring. I wish you a new year of love, health, peace, and new ways to connect with your grief.

New year resolutions for grief? For many, the grief experience becomes extremely intense over the holidays and they recognize a need to make a change in the way they manage their grief and symptoms they are experiencing. The following articles provide ideas and resources you can try to cope with your grief in 2024.

This month we will feature two different podcasts from two different family members.

Episode 42 - On January 10th, Tami Millard, will share her experiences after her husband suddenly died overnight and she found herself a single mother, grieving, working and caring for the needs of her teenage daughter. She describes how part of her healing process included learning about grief, exploring her feelings, and where she is today.

Episode 43 - On January 24th, Tami’s daughter, Anya, invites us into her grief experience after her father’s death and shares her perception of her mother’s grief, lessons she learned in grief, reflects back on high school and being a teenager without her father.

Therapy Heals’s first Professional Education Grief Course: Foundations in Grief  begins on Monday, January 29th and 18 hours of continuing education are available.

Foundations in Grief will be taught online via Zoom from 4:00-7:15pm. The six-week course will conclude on Monday, March 11th and will not meet on President weekend Monday, February 19th. The course enrollment fee is $449 and the continuing education administrative fee is an additional $75. This course is designed for mental health professionals, health professionals, first responders, and clergy who support and care for individuals living with grief. Individuals interested in learning more about grief are also welcome to attend. Weekly modules will address the following topics: 

1. How we die: Understanding mortality by age, ethnicity and geographic region across the United States and society's response to death.
2. How we grieve: Exploring different forms of grief and how grief differs across the lifespan.
3. How we think in grief: Learning thanatological theories to understand the grieving process.
4. How we work in grief: Part 1: Utilizing theoretical approaches to guide client treatment.
5. How we work with grief: Part 2: Skills and techniques for working with clients in grief.
6. How we grow in grief: Exploring cultural humility, continuing bonds, and post traumatic growth. 

Click here to Register.

Therapy Heals continues to provide crisis support after a sudden or unexpected death (in-person and virtually), to corporate, school, and community organizations. When an unexpected death occurs, most organizations are in a state of shock and crisis, and many struggle with logistical details and responsibilities that must continue. We work with leadership teams to develop a plan to navigate through the loss to ensure healing in the school and business environment. If your business, school, or community organization has experienced a sudden or unexpected death, contact  Dr. Jennifer R. Levin at [email protected] or text (626) 695-4211. 

Response and Preparation for Sudden or Unexpected Death is a program designed to help businesses, schools, and community organizations prepare for an unexpected death in the workplace. This resource seamlessly enables company leaders to respond in the most beneficial way to the impacted employee's family and as importantly, the entire organization and staff. The Response and Preparation resource includes a video and training guidebook: Preparing Leadership for Sudden and Unexpected Death in the Workplace, five employee grief resource sheets, and the 7 Essential Steps - Implementation for Sudden or Unexpected Death in the Workplace. Preparation for the unexpected invests in employee, staff, and student wellness. It also saves time, resources, and prepares organizations to lead during stressful times. For more information, please email Dr. Levin at [email protected] directly. 

This If you are interested in learning more about the 2024 Whidbey Island Grief Retreat, please sign up now to join our waiting list.

Testimonials: 

If you’re doubting coming, so did I. Could not be more grateful I came. I left feeling more at peace than I had in several years. - Anonymous

This retreat took off a lot of scar tissue. I am so grateful for the chance to continue healing. - Carol C

Thank you for reading our monthly newsletter Therapy Heals: Guidance in Grief. As always, we welcome your feedback, submissions, and suggestions for future editions.