Support group helps people cope with grief during the holidays

A free support group designed to help people cope with grief, especially during the upcoming holiday season, will be offered at Wayne Memorial Hospital.

The six-week session will provide support and focus on grief as a normal part of a person's transition through life. The sessions will be held Monday evenings, 6 to 7 p.m., from Nov. 25 through Dec. 30 in the David Katz Conference Room, on the second floor of Wayne Memorial Hospital, 601 Park St., Honesdale.

“We want to recognize that for many people, Hanukkah is not always happy. Christmas is not always merry, and Kwanza is not always bright,” says the Rev. Edward Erb, a chaplain at Wayne Memorial and one of the group’s facilitators. “The holidays are often difficult when a loved one is gone. Decorations aren’t as beautiful, food is not as joyful, and songs can seem flat.”

Anna M.Walsh, Father Erb’s co-facilitator and a social worker at the hospital and its hospice department, says grief is experienced by each person very differently.

“There is no ‘right or wrong’ way to engage in that experience,” she said. "Sharing the experience often helps us understand our own losses more clearly. It makes us aware we are not alone in our feelings."

The support group will encourage participants to explore their own solutions to the challenges of living without their loved ones and dealing with the many changes that follow a loss. The group will provide a safe place in which people can sort out their feelings and share as they are able and willing. No one will be required to share.

The group is non-denominational. The facilitators say each participant’s experience would be enhanced by attending all sessions. However, it is understandable if someone cannot attend every one. Participants may enter or exit at any time.

A registration form can be found at wmh.org. For more information, email edwardkerb@aol.com or call 570-241-2685.