Showing Author: BRH Staff
Overdose Awareness Day 2020
To anyone who has lost an important person to overdose: Today, August 31st, is National Overdose Awareness Day. We look at anyone who has lost a loved one to overdose with awe and reverence. Grieving the loss of someone to overdose is an incredible exercise in making sense of the overwhelming, relinquishing control, and acknowledging one’s powerlessness. Due to forces outside of yourself, you have been pushed into a journey you did not want to [...]
What Can Possibly Come from Our Pain?
What Can Possibly Come from Our Pain? What do we do with our deepest and most painful grief? Some bury the hurt deep within, while others give it words and express it openly. Some speak their grief simply, while others process their emotions through creative arts. One family took their pain and developed a video game. After the Green family’s son, Joel, died, they developed “That Dragon, Cancer” – which they describe as “an immersive [...]
Music Therapy Concerts
Our Music Therapists were able to provide socially distant concerts to patients in facilities. Our Music Therapists have missed being able to sit with patients face to face, so this was such a gift for all. We are grateful so for this opportunity! “Hidden Springs Senior Living was fortunate to start their day off with a pleasant performance by Blue Ridge Hospice Music Therapists. Residents enjoyed some time under the morning sun while having their [...]
How to Speak to a Newly Bereaved Person
How often have you felt awkward, not knowing the right thing to say after someone you know has lost a loved one? Feeling someone else’s pain, especially when we personally relate to their type of loss, can be so uncomfortable that we just want to hide away. But have you ever been on the other side of this experience? Having just experienced the death of someone you love, have your friends disappeared? Staying present can [...]
Kintsugi – The Art of Repairing Broken Things
There is an ancient Japanese art form called kintsugi, in which broken pottery is reconstructed – and in contrast to typical repair work, the goal of the reconstruction is not to hide the broken places but to emphasize them. In kintsugi, the seams connecting the broken pieces are filled with gold, creating a beautiful piece of art that highlights the history of the object. The object is broken but it is not deemed less valuable. [...]
Self Care Menu from Blue Ridge Hospice Grief and Loss Support
What’s on your self-care menu? We all need a personalized self-care menu – the activities that we incorporate into daily practice or use as needed to maintain our physical and emotional health. Having a solid pool of options can help us endure stressful times. Here are some activities to consider if your self-care menu is lacking: Gardening can boost your mood as much as exercise Journaling for just a few minutes each day helps manage [...]
