Meets 1st Thursday of the month, 5 pm at St. Mary’s Parish Centre 

Have you experienced any of the following?

• Death of a loved one
• A miscarriage
• A loved one’s serious illness
• Divorce or relationship breakup
• Loss of safety after a traumatic incident
• Loss of good health
• Loss of a job
• Retirement

Grieving is a highly individual experience and there is no right or wrong way to grieve.  How you grieve depends on many things, including your personality and coping style, your life experience, your faith and how significant the loss was to you.  Grieving inevitably takes time.  Healing happens gradually – it cannot be found or hurried and there is no “normal” timetable or formulae for grieving.  Some people start to feel better in weeks or months.  For others the process may take years.  If grief is prolonged it is advisable that you seek professional help from a Psychologist or Counsellor.

Whatever your grief experience, it is important to be patient with yourself and allow the process to naturally unfold.

• Trying to ignore your pain or keep it from surfacing will only make it worse in the long run.
• Feeling sad, frightened or lonely is a very normal reaction to loss.
• You do not need to protect family or friends by putting on a brave front.
• Crying does not mean you are weak.  It is normal and healthy.