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Browse every published article connected to Sandy Clendenen, with exact attribution and full-archive search.
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Browse every published article connected to Sandy Clendenen, or search within this exact expert archive.
So far in this series of articles on the Myths of Grief we have discussed the following myths: 1) It just takes time. 2) Keep your grieving to yourself. 3) Put on a happy face. You'll feel better. 4) Be strong. Others are depending on you. We have explored how each of these ...
How do you survive Valentine's Day when your special valentine is no longer around? 1) If you are feeling sad or depressed, be honest about it. In the past this may have been a special day for you and n your loved one. But now you are alone. If you are sad, n be being ...
Mother's Day carries a lot of emotional significance for most grievers. Whatever one's relationship with Mother, this person is our first connection here on the Earth plane. This connection may have lasted a lifetime or it may have ended on the day of birth with adoption, or any number other life circumstances.
Holidays can be difficult for widows. Whether it is a birthday, anniversary, Thanksgiving or New Years, the memories of past holidays can keep widows stuck in the past and unable to move forward in their life. It can feel impossible to even consider participating in a holiday without one's spouse. Those shared traditions and memories from past years probably do not feel appropriate now. Sometimes widows feel guilty when they think about participating in special days without their spouse.
Many who grieve find comfort and healing through the jou aling process. Writing truly does cause thinking. And thinking is the beginning of new awareness. And awareness is the beginning of transformation. When the love of your life is no longer physically present in your everyday like, there is definitely a huge empty space in your life. Often there is a great need to express yourself. Jou aling can really fill that need in a safe and secure way. Your journal can become your closest confidant. You may ask if jou aling is an isolating process.
Dating and Griefr By Sandy Clendenen About a year after my husband died I began feeling extremely restless. Grief kept my mind skittering from one thing to another. Although these restless feelings were confusing, they were at least a bit of a relief from the heaviness of grief’s deep sadness and depression. Somehow, from this agitated state of displaced energy, I decided to try internet dating. It took me awhile to figure out the mechanics, since I knew very little about computers at that time.
When you lose your spouse life feels very disorganized. All relationships provide a sense of structure, whether you think of it that way or not. Much of grief is really about coping with the lack of structure which manifests in the sad, empty space of what had been a significant ...
This is the fourth article in a series of 8 articles about some of the prevalent myths that can keep grievers stuck in their grief much longer than necessary. The myth we will focus on in this article is: "Be strong. Others are depending on you." This myth can be a real energy drainer. What ...
When one loses their spouse, a top life stressor, the level of stress experienced can feel extremely overwhelming to the griever. Modern life is filled with stress. And this stress occurs on many different levels. There are the daily stresses of life which are often ignored as trivial. These are things like getting stuck in traffic, noise pollution, lack of sleep, car problems. There can also be deeper causes of stress like excessive worrying, health conce s, fear of poverty, negative self talk, to name a few.
Do you know your net worth? The first time I was asked this questio I had no idea what it meant. Even though I paid the bills for our farming business, I really did not pay attention to the bigger picture. I had money to pay the bills. that was the important thing. Right? When my husband died ...
As we continue in this series of articles on the myths of grief I want to discuss the third myth, "Put on a happy face. You'll feel better." With all the recent emphasis on the Law of Attraction, there is an urgency within the culture to be happy. We attract what we think about, says the Law of ...
In this article I will be discussing a myth which most people can readily recall from early childhood, "Replace the loss and go on with your life." As young children we may have had a cherished stuffed animal or other special treasure. We may also have been fortunate enough to have a pet. The ...
While grief is a universal experience, the mou ing process varies from family to family and from culture to culture. What I am referring to as the mou ing process are the rituals that most of us grow up with about how to behave and how to speak when confronted with a loss. In essence, mou ing rituals can be referred to as habits or paradigms. These habits or rituals are usually not questioned.
Since grief is a difficult topic for most people, there is a tendency to descend into myths about the subject of grief. These myths have often been passed down from generation to generation. These myths or paradigms easily become the truth of our lives that we accept without questioning. In ...
Several times over the past few years I began to keep a gratitude journal. I bought a special notebook and pen and kept them by my bed. I wrote for a few days. Then I would forget for a day. Then I would stop completely. Last year I made a commitment to myself to write in my journal for 21 ...
In the previous article I shared with you one of the most prevalent myths encountered by grievers; namely,"...it just takes time to heal grief." I explained how this myth, along with many others, have been passed down from generation to generation, and how these myths are assumed to be factual ...
The grief process can be compared to the transformative process of the butterfly. Grievers ofte find themselves stuck inside the safety of the cocoon of grief. There is a sense of feeling lost in the darkness of grief. There is a push-puss feeling that often occurs during grief. Grievers want to move beyond their grief, but often find themselves unable to move out of that dark but secure place that grief can become. The journey of the butterfly from the cocoon is not an easy task.
About a year after ny husband died I began feeling extremely restless. My mind seemed to be skittering from one thing to another. in a way, this was welcome relief from the heaviness of deep sadness and depression. But something was missing. Of course, comething was missing. My husband was ...
Dating and Griefr By Sandy Clendenen About a year after my husband died I began feeling extremely restless. Grief kept my mind skittering from one thing to another. Although these restless feelings were confusing, they were at least a bit of a relief from the heaviness of grief’s deep sadness and depression. Somehow, from this agitated state of displaced energy, I decided to try internet dating. It took me awhile to figure out the mechanics, since I knew very little about computers at that time.