Let the joy your loved one's life brought to you
begin to take the place of the hurt and pain of death.

The second Tuesday of each month
7:00 – 9:00 PM
  Community Access Center

315 W. Sycamore
 Independence, Kansas 

 

 For further information

please contact one of the

Sponsors

Penwell Gabel

Webb and Rodrick Funeral Home

(620) 331-3900
 

Four County
Mental Health Center

(620) 331-1748

 

Harry Hynes
Memorial Hospice

(620) 251-1640
     A GRIEF SUPPORT GROUP is co-sponsored by Penwell Gabel Webb and Rodrick Funeral Home, Four County Mental Health Center, and Harry Hynes Memorial Hospice.  This ongoing Grief Support Group is available to anyone dealing with the loss of a loved one.  
     This group is for anyone whose life has been affected by loss and wants to know how to help themselves or those they care about. The focus of this group is to help individuals and families understand and cope with their grief in the first years following the death of their loved ones.
      Anyone is welcome to come to the group – pre-registration is not necessary. 

WHO MAY ATTEND?

  • Anyone whose life has been affected by a loss.

  • Persons seeking information on grief and recovery.

  • Persons having a desire to help others deal with a death, a divorce, or other major losses.  They may be a professional in the community, a member of the clergy or funeral industry, or a person who has expe5ienced grief and who wants to help others.

NORMAL REACTIONS TO LOSS
Grief differs based on who we are, whom we have lost, and how much our day-to-day life is altered by the death. A normal reaction to loss, grief is unique in its impact, course and meaning to each of us.  Experiencing the loss of a partner, a parent or sibling, or a lifelong friend, with whom we share history, often has special meaning to us.

Thinking about reactions to the loss of a loved one, we tend to think only of the emotional reactions. Yet, people also experience physical and behavioral reactions.  The intensity of grief changes over time and through personal growth. Some of the most typical emotional, physical, and behavioral reactions include the following: 

Immediate Reactions — The first few weeks following death:

·     Emotional: Shock, relief, release

·     Physical: Numbness, shortness of breath, heavy chest, empty feeling

·     Behavioral: Denial, disorientation, crying, listlessness

Later Reactions — After the shock wears off, you begin to experience feelings again

·     Emotional: Anger, fear, guilt, panic, loneliness, depression

·     Physical: Chest pains, headaches, fatigue, vulnerability to illness,

·     Behavioral: Over-reactive, hyper-sensitive, sleeplessness, isolation, need to relive death

Adjustment — A time when you think you are going to "make it":

·     Emotional: Taking responsibility, reconstructing your life

·     Physical: Looking forward, doing things for oneself

·     Behavioral: Exploring new interests, personal growth
COPING WITH GRIEF AND LOSS  
For weeks after a death, most caring families and friends do all that they can to comfort us, making life as comfortable as possible.  Many times, we are still in shock, accepting this support in a daze.  Gradually, those around us return to their normal lives, but we do not.  The reality of the situation may lead you to think "I am alone," but you are not.  Others who have felt what you are feeling now stand ready to help.  This is the focus of the Grief Support Group.  

If you are coping with a significant loss in your life and wish to better understand the grief that accompanies such loss, this support group may offer the information, comfort and support that you need as you proceed along your grief journey, to help you make some sense out of what you may be feeling, to prepare you for what to expect in grief, and to help you find meaning, growth, and healing along the way.  Whether the loss was recent or long ago, it may still be limiting your ability to participate fully in life. 

 
Resources and Help in the Southeast Kansas Area