Grieving Mindfully

Grief is a personal journey, never the same for any two people and as unique as your life and your relationships. Although loss is an inevitable part of life, how you approach this fact can make the difference between meaningless pain and the manifestation of understanding and wisdom. This book describes a mindful approach to dealing with grief that can help you make that difference. By walking this mindful path, you will discover that you are capable of transforming and healing the grief you carry and finding the spiritual and emotional resilience you need to move through this challenging time. These mindfulness practices, explained here in simple and practical language, will help you bear your time of grief. But they will do more than that, too. They will guide you to a life more fully lived, with more meaning. These simple practices will help you experience what richness comes from asking deeper questions about loss and about life.

Without proper support, navigating the icy waters of grief may feel impossible. The grieving person may feel spiritually bankrupt and often the loss is so painful that the bereaved may lose faith in what they once held dear. Mindfulness meditation can restore hope by offering a compassionate safe haven for healing and self-reflection. While nobody can predict the path of someone else's grief, this book will guide the reader forward through the grieving process with simple mindfulness-based exercises to restore mind, body and spirit. These easy-to-follow meditations will help the reader to cope with the pain of loss, and embark on a healing journey. Each chapter focuses on a different aspect of grief, and the guided meditations will calm the mind and increase clarity and focus. Mindfulness and Grief will help readers to begin the process of reconstructing the shattered self that is left in the wake of any major loss.

Do you find yourself ruminating about things you can't control? Worrying about those yet-to-complete goals and projects? What about just feeling like you're not the person you want to be? People who worry and ruminate find it difficult to stop anxiously anticipating future events and regretting or rethinking past actions. Left unchecked, this tendency can lead to mental health problems such as depression and generalized anxiety disorder. The Mindful Path Through Worry and Rumination offers powerful mindfulness strategies derived from Buddhist spiritual practices and proven psychological techniques to help you stop overthinking what you can't control-the future and the past-and learn how to find contentment in the present moment.

If you have lost a loved one suddenly or traumatically, have experienced extreme trauma yourself, or simply cannot process the death of someone dear to you, the pain can be overwhelming. For most people, grief resolves on its own, given time; but for many others, grief can lead to serious psychological problems such as depression, anxiety, anger, and an intense, inconsolable yearning for the deceased. Prolonged or complicated grief is a serious psychological condition that can leave you feeling dazed, stunned, or in shock for months or even years after your loss. Your sorrow does not diminish with time. In fact, it may even increase. No matter how much support you receive from family and friends, you simply cannot “get over it.” However, there are steps you can take to begin healing. Mindfulness for Prolonged Grief offers you real tools for overcoming the painful symptoms of prolonged grief. In the book, you will learn to relieve your pain by maintaining a healthy lifestyle, improving the quality of your sleep, and reconnecting with your life’s goals. In addition, you will discover how mindfulness exercises and guided meditations can help you process your grief, manage your intense emotions, and deal with loss without resorting to avoidant behaviors (such as addiction) as coping mechanisms. Loss is an extremely painful part of life, but with help you can build the resilience you need to heal, and use your grief as a powerful vehicle for growth.

If you have lost a loved one suddenly or traumatically, have experienced extreme trauma yourself, or simply cannot process the death of someone dear to you, the pain can be overwhelming. For most people, grief resolves on its own, given time; but for many others, grief can lead to serious psychological problems such as depression, anxiety, anger, and an intense, inconsolable yearning for the deceased. Prolonged or complicated grief is a serious psychological condition that can leave you feeling dazed, stunned, or in shock for months or even years after your loss. Your sorrow does not diminish with time. In fact, it may even increase. No matter how much support you receive from family and friends, you simply cannot “get over it.” However, there are steps you can take to begin healing. Mindfulness for Prolonged Grief offers you real tools for overcoming the painful symptoms of prolonged grief. In the book, you will learn to relieve your pain by maintaining a healthy lifestyle, improving the quality of your sleep, and reconnecting with your life’s goals. In addition, you will discover how mindfulness exercises and guided meditations can help you process your grief, manage your intense emotions, and deal with loss without resorting to avoidant behaviors (such as addiction) as coping mechanisms. Loss is an extremely painful part of life, but with help you can build the resilience you need to heal, and use your grief as a powerful vehicle for growth.

A life-limiting illness may have taken hold of your body, but you can still live more fully and openly than ever before. You can enrich your life by exploring ways to make peace with yourself and deepen connections with friends and family. This book will help you reap the benefits of mindfulness and acceptance, one day at a time. Leaves Falling Gently is a comforting guide to the mindfulness and compassion practices that will help you embrace the present moment, despite your illness. With each simple practice, you’ll deepen your appreciation for the experiences that bring you joy and enhance your capacity for gratitude, generosity, and love. As you work through each personal reflection and guided meditation, you’ll regain the strength to live fully, regardless of the changes and challenges that come.

This core introductory text, with a focus on clinical application, combines the knowledge and skills of counseling psychology with current theory and research in grief and bereavement. The third edition is updated to address issues related to the developmental aspects of grief, including grief in children and young people, grief as a lifespan concept, and grief in an increasingly aging demographic. It describes new therapeutic approaches and examines the neurological basis of grief as well as trauma from disruption and loss. Also emphasized is the role of diversity, along with cultural considerations in grief counseling. Instructor’s resources include a Test Bank, Instructor’s Manual, and PowerPoint slides. User-friendly, while grounded in the latest research and theoretical constructs, the text offers such pedagogical aids as learning objectives, practice examples, glossary terms, and questions for reflection in each chapter. Above all, the book addresses grief counseling and support in a way that is informed and practical. The content explores concepts relevant to complicated grief, while differentiating the normal human experience of grief from mental disorders. Purchase includes digital access for use on mobile devices and computers. NEW TO THE THIRD EDITION: Updated research and content on attachment and grieving styles Expansion of social issues impacting grief including political changes, environmental concerns, cultural differences, and exposure to terrorism New theory, research, and practice for grief in non-death losses New information on diversity and grief, the role of grounding and contemplative practices, and grief and developmental perspectives across the lifespan Use of technology in both professional and informal grief support New case studies with additional case scenarios for real-world application Practice examples containing clinical application information in each chapter KEY FEATURES: Focuses on clinical application Combines the knowledge and skills of counseling psychology with current theory and research in grief and bereavement Written in easy-to-understand language, with emphasis on practical application Includes learning objectives, practice examples, glossary terms, and questions for reflection Supplemental Instructor’s Manual, Test Bank, and PowerPoints included

"We can intentionally befriend the breath to great advantage. And that is what Danny Penman's beautifully tactile and invitingly pleasing and uplifting gift to us is all about." —Jon Kabat-Zinn You breathe 22,000 times every day. How many of those breaths are you really aware of? For thousands of years, people have used the art of breathing for equally profound effects on the mind and body. In The Art of Breathing, international bestselling and award-winning author Dr. Danny Penman provides a concise guide to letting go and finding peace in a messy world, simply by taking the time to breathe. Dissolve anxiety, stress, and unhappiness, enhance your mind, and unleash your creativity with the simple exercises included. With each little moment of mindfulness, you’ll discover a happier, calmer you. Mindfulness really is as easy as breathing. Some known side effects: You will smile more. You will worry less. Life won’t bother you so much. This new edition includes a new afterword by Mark Williams, author of Mindfulness.