The Session: Counselling, Clinical Supervision and Consulting

08/07/2024

A grieving mother once shared, "I felt guilty all the time. I used to do things at full speed so I could be this exhausted dog and sleep instead of thinking about all the things I could have done differently."

Guilt in grief is common, but we know many professionals find it to be one of the more challenging aspects of their work.

Join me and my colleague, Nathan MacArthur, for an insightful session where we delve into the complexities of guilt in grief counselling.

In this session, we bring together our 30+ years of experience to help you conceptualise and work therapeutically with this common response to loss.

In this webinar, we explore:

▪️ What is guilt?
▪️ Why do we experience guilt?
▪️ Types of guilt
▪️ 4 therapeutic interventions for working with guilt

This session is suitable for counsellors, social workers, psychologists and other mental health professionals working with anyone experiencing guilt. It is also open to anyone who is interested in this topic. We will be drawing upon our experiences in supporting people following a bereavement, however, the techniques will be helpful when working with guilt in other contexts.

There will also be a live Q&A session, providing an opportunity for you to engage directly with us and get your questions answered. You will receive 30-day access to the recording of this session

🗓️ Date: Wednesday, 31st July
🕒 Time: 12.30 - 2.00pm
🔗 https://events.humanitix.com/copy-of-working-with-guilt-lessons-from-grief-counselling

20/11/2023

FREE OR BY DONATION GRIEF WEBINAR 🫶

Birthdays, Christmas, Father's Day, Mother's Day, anniversaries - there are many dates throughout the year that can be especially difficult when we're grieving. In December, we'll be hosting a webinar to offer you ideas, strategies and tips to navigate significant dates.

We’re waiving our usual $37 fee to raise funds for two incredible charities
- The Missed Foundation and the Childhood Dementia Initiative. Please give what you can - 100% of all funds will be donated.

Please share with any family, friends, clients, or colleagues who might benefit from this webinar.

TO REGISTER: https://events.humanitix.com/webinar-coping-with-anniversaries-and-special-occasions

21/08/2023

I recently watched 'The Alpinist', a powerfully stirring and visually arresting documentary about free climbing. In it, a grieving mother says, "[Grief] takes you to another place, and then you have to learn to live there”, a sentiment echoed by many grieving parents I meet. It’s that sense of being abruptly deported to another world where you don’t know how things work and don’t speak the language.

This Wednesday, 22 August, Nathan and I will be holding a gentle and honest space as we consider the landscape of grief following the death of a child of any age. As always, we'll be sharing the wisdom of the crowd - the ideas and coping strategies we've learnt from speaking with hundreds of bereaved parents.

For further information and tickets: https://events.humanitix.com/grieving-the-death-of-a-child

25/07/2023

Ever heard about ‘Swedish death cleaning’, the concept of sorting belongings and personal affairs before we die to reduce the impact on others?

I joined Life Matters on ABC radio this morning to talk through this nuanced topic.

As I and many listeners suggested, this approach suits some of us, but not all of us.

What happens to all your stuff when you're gone? If you haven't thought about it, it might be time to. While it might seem daunting de-cluttering for the end of life, for some, experts say it can be a freeing ritual that also helps loved ones out. We look at how to make death cleaning a part of your...

31/05/2023

Grief doesn't keep to a timeline. We’re not back to normal after two days of bereavement leave. We don’t get ‘closure’ after the first year.

�But we, and others around us, may have expectations about how long our grief should last, that we should be ‘over it’ by a certain point.

In truth, as tough as the first year is, the years that follow can bring their own pain and their own awareness. As time goes on, we encounter the permanence and depth of our loss in ways we hadn’t imagined; when we spend their birthday alone, when people stop mentioning their names, when we wonder what they’d be doing now.

Next Wednesday, 7 June at 6.30pm (AEDT) we will be talking about grief over time, including myths vs. reality, and the many impacts on family and social relationships.

We’ll be sharing what helps and hinders - including research and wisdom from the crowd.

As always, we finish with a live Q&A and the recording is yours to watch for 30 days.

For tickets: https://events.humanitix.com/after-the-first-year-grief-over-time

29/03/2023

When someone dies after an illness, many people assume that 'at least you had time to say goodbye'.
As grief counsellors, we hear the reality is more nuanced and complex.

On Wednesday, 5 April, we talk honestly and sensitively about the myths and realities of an anticipated death. We offer helpful ideas and strategies to manage and, as always, finish with a live Q&A session. The recording is available for 30 days for everyone who registers.

Information and tickets here: https://events.humanitix.com/grieving-after-a-death-from-illness-wiqovxyr

19/02/2023

A sudden death is unexpected and shocking, leaving us unprepared for the emotional, psychological, physical, social, and spiritual impacts which follow.
We grapple with endless, unanswered questions - the ‘what ifs?’ and ‘if only’ scenarios - which replay alongside our intense grief.

Join us this Wednesday, 22 February at 6.30pm (AEDT), as we explore the challenges experienced after a sudden and unexpected loss, and offers ideas and tools to help cope.

In this session we discuss:

- the unique challenges experienced after a sudden death (including deaths following health events, accident, su***de or homicide)
- managing guilt, blame and anger
- the impacts of trauma
- strategies to cope in the first few months and in the years to come
- question and answer session

You'll get the recording for 30 days too.

For more information and tickets: https://events.humanitix.com/grieving-after-a-sudden

27/11/2022

Grief changes our calendar; birthdays, Christmas, Father's Day, Mother's Day, and anniversaries can now fill us with dread and anxiety. As a bereaved father once told me, "All the days we used to look forward to are now ticking time bombs."

On Wednesday, 7 December, at 6.30 pm (AEDT), we'll discuss the challenges of significant dates and offer you the wisdom of the crowd - all that we have learnt from the thousands of people we've spoken with about how they navigate holidays and special occasions.

Come with your questions and join our live Q&A. You'll also have access to the recording for 30 days.

For further information and tickets: https://events.humanitix.com/coping-with-anniversaries-and-special-occasions

02/10/2022

When a spouse or a partner dies, it's not only that the person has died, but that our 'together future' and 'remembered past' are mourned too.

This coming Wednesday, 5 October, at 6.30pm (AEDT), we are talking about the multiple and unique losses experienced after the death of a partner.

We consider those difficult questions that we and others ask and think about the impacts of a partner's death at different stages of our lives.

As always, we provide strategies to cope and finish with a live Q&A session.

These sessions are designed for people who are grieving and those supporting them, including friends, family and professionals.

For more information and tickets: https://events.humanitix.com/webinar-grieving-the-death-of-a-spouse-or-partner

27/09/2022

Siblings tell us their grief often feels hidden or overlooked. Information for siblings - especially adult siblings - can be hard to find, so we're highlighting the following resources:

+ Indira Naidoo and Wendy's recent interview on Compass ABC TV about sibling loss, su***de and what has helped Indira the most https://www.abc.net.au/religion/watch/compass/indiras-tree/13989344

+ special episodes about sibling grief on the 'Good Mourning' podcast, which discusses grief with "honesty, hope and humour". Over two episodes, hosts Sally and Im share the thoughts of their community after the death of a brother or sister.
https://www.goodmourning.com.au/podcasts/bonus-sibling-loss-special-part-one

+ we have a dedicated webinar about 'Grieving after the death of a Sibling' and until September 30th, we are offering 30% off the recording
https://vimeo.com/ondemand/deathofasiblingwebinar/

We know it's important to hear the stories of others experiencing grief, so let us know if you have other suggestions or resources that have helped you in your grief.

24/09/2022

We've rescheduled our free grief webinar to Tuesday, 27 September as the original date fell on the Queen's Memorial Day.

Those who are grieving and those who support them - family, friends and professionals - will find helpful information about a range of grief responses, what to do with belongings and have an opportunity to participate in a live Q&A with two grief counsellors. Registrants will also receive a link to the recording.

Please share widely with your networks.

For further details and a link to register: https://events.humanitix.com/an-introductory-guide-to-grief-free-webinar

28/08/2022

We're hosting a FREE lunchtime webinar, and we hope you can join us or forward this invitation to anyone it will help.

We know grief is not often discussed or, if it is, gets talked about in hushed, uncertain tones, leaving us to wonder if what we're thinking and feeling is normal.

In our 'Introductory Guide to Grief', you'll hear from two grief counsellors with over 30 years of combined experience, talk frankly and sensitively about grief's impacts and offer strategies to help you cope.

We hope everyone who will find this session helpful will attend, so we'd love it if you could forward this email to friends, family, clients or colleagues.

For further details and a link to register: https://events.humanitix.com/an-introductory-guide-to-grief-free-webinar