How is grief different for the introvert? What additional challenges come up for those who experience the world from the inside out? In this workshop, we will explore what some of the additional challenges are for introverts in grief. We’ll look at what grief adds to the mix and explore small steps on how to tend to our particular needs as an introverted person in grief.
Seasoned Widowed: Community Building for those Widowed 5 years and more
Eeking out Happiness
An interactive approach and discussion of happiness with techniques to a happier life, while respecting grief and the obstacles it presents in the aftermath of losing one’s partner.
Love After Loss
Moderators: Holly Wagg & Sean Boileau
Can you imagine yourself on a date? Do you even want to start dating again? What will your family and friends say when you decide to start dating again? Does it matter? What happens if you start dating and it doesn’t work out? What are your best hopes and worst fears about falling in love again? Join us for a panel discussion where you can hear from couples navigating these issues.
Grief, The Energy Body, and The Healing Benefits of Reiki
We are all made up of several different “bodies” – our physical body, our energy body, and our mental body, each of which experiences grief in different ways.
After the death of a spouse or partner, it’s common for our energy centers to be totally depleted while also being thrown completely out of alignment. Reiki is a Japanese healing modality that dates back to the 1920s focused on the balancing of our energy centers, or “Chakras.” Through learning more about the chakras, what they each represent, the feelings that are associated with them, and where to direct our energy as we heal, we afford ourselves a deeper understanding of the effects of grief that are sometimes hard to explain.
Topics will include an overview of the energy body and chakra system, a deep dive into each of the seven energy centers, how to protect our energy as we grieve, and how practices like Reiki can be supportive as we walk through our grief.
Grief and Ritual in a Secular Age
Nearly one quarter claim “none” as their religious affiliation with nearly a third reporting they seldom or never attend church. Historically, faith traditions helped the grieving with structure and ritual that provided comfort, community, compassion, and a way to seek meaning in what might otherwise seem meaningless. How then are those of us without a strong faith community able to find support after the death of a loved one? Creating personal rituals can be one way forward.
Different After You
When our world is turned upside down by death, grievers are frequently encouraged to “get back to normal.” But how? There is nothing “normal” about the person we love being physically missing from our lives. What if instead of trying to recreate the past or even accept a new normal, we allow ourselves to be changed? When we integrate our person into our lives and acknowledge the change in perspective that grief provides, we can stop fighting our pain and start creating a life for the self that was born through tragedy. Join Michele Neff Hernandez, Soaring Spirits International CEO, author, widow, and advocate for a conversation about honoring what was in order to welcome what can be.