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Center for Renewal: Grief Counseling & Psychotherapy

Joan E. Pedersen, MA, ThM, LCSW-C

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A Place for Renewal
 
We do best homage to our dead by
living our lives fully even in the
shadow of our loss.
                                                                                                 Jewish prayer
 

Loss can take many forms beyond a physical death--separation/divorce, miscarriage, suicide, infertility, major illness, the passing of a favorite pet, or illness, unemployment, empty-nesting, retirement--each of which carries profound challenges and deep emotional pain. It can be a lonely and isolating time, particularly when well-intentioned friends or relatives might advise, "Just get over it. It’s time to move on.”

 

Sharing your unique story with me, an empathetic therapist who has also experienced loss, can restore a sense of stability as you work through the demands of mourning. Grief counseling affords you a safe, non-judgmental, patient setting in which your agonizing experience is validated and respected. With professional support, you can express, and in turn better understand the often overwhelming emotions of grief; accept the reality of the loss; develop appropriate coping skills; and re-invest in a healthy life-giving future.

 

 
The following books may offer you additional healing.

 

How to Go On Living When Someone You Love Dies, Therese A. Rando, PhD
 
Grieving Mindfully, Sameet Kumar, PhD
 
The Mourning HandbookHelen Fitzgerald
 
Writing to Heal, James Pennebacker, PhD
 
Motherless Daughters: The Legacy of Loss, Hope Edelman
 
Widow to Widow: How the Bereaved Help One Another, Phyllis Silverman
 
Necessary Losses, Judith Viorst
 
Swallowed by a Snake: The gift of the masculine side of healing, Thomas R. Golden
 
In the Presence of Grief: Helping Family Members Resolve Death, Dying and Bereavement Issues,
Dorothy S. Becvar
 
Making Peace with Your Parents, Harold Bloomfield
 
Man's Search for Meaning, Viktor E. Frankel
 
Staring at the Sun: Overcoming the Terror of Death, Irvin D. Yalom
 
The Courage to Grieve: Creative Living, Recovery, & Growth through Grief,
Judy Tatelbaum
 
No Time to Say Goodbye, Surviving the Suicide of a Loved One, Carla Fine
 
Dying Well, Peace and Possibilities at the End of Life, Ira Byock, M.D.
 
Handbook for Mortals, Guidance for People Facing Serious Illness, Joanne
Lynn, M.D. and Joan Harrold, M.D.
 
Living Through Personal Crisis, Ann Stearns
 
Treatment of Complicated Mourning, Therese A. Rando PhD
 
Meaning Reconstruction & the Experience of Loss, Edited by Robert A.
Neimeyer
 
A Year of Magical Thinking, Joan Didion
 
A Grief Observed, C.S. Lewis
 
Precious Companion: Comfort and Remembrance after the loss of a pet,
Laynee Gilbert
 
Loss of a Pet, Wallace Sife, PhD
  
Books to help grieving children:
 
The Invisible String, Patrice Karst
 
Talking about Death, Earl Grollman
 
The Tenth Good Thing about Barney, Judith Viorst
 
When Dinosaurs Die, Laurie Krasny Brown and Marc Brown
 
Tear Soup, Pat Schweibert
 
I Miss You: A First Look at Death, Pat Thomas and Leslie Harker
 
The Grieving Child: A Parent's Guide, Helen Fitzgerald
 
Helping Children Cope with the Loss of a Loved One: A Guide for Grownups,
William C. Kroen
 
Sad Isn't Bad: A Good-Grief Guidebook for Kids Dealing with Loss,
Michaelene Mundy and R.W. Alley
 
About Dying: An Open Family Book for Parents and Children Together,
Sarah Stein
 
The Fall of Freddie and the Leaf,  Leo Buscaglia