National Grief Awareness Day Professional Development Conference

National Grief Awareness Day Professional Development Conference

by | Aug 31, 2024 | Speaking, What's New

I was proud to be part of the inaugural National Grief Awareness Day Professional Development Conference organized by On Tuesdays We Wear Black. The event provided grief training for business professionals. I presented How to Human: Normalizing and Navigating Grief in the Workplace:

We don’t leave our humanity at the door when we go to work. That means that when we experience a major life event like a death, divorce/breakup, illness or injury, it will impact how we show up for our job and how we navigate our workplace relationships. Because all of those events can involve a grief response. Moreover, grief can be present in “good” things, too. Weddings, having/adopting children, retirements—all of these milestones involve change. And, when you get down to it, grief is about adapting to change. In this session, we’ll explore what grief is (and isn’t) and discuss strategies for responding to grieving coworkers with compassion and competence.

Penn State Outreach – Speaking and Learning Grief: Improving Grief Literacy

Penn State Outreach – Speaking and Learning Grief: Improving Grief Literacy

by | Aug 19, 2024 | What's New, Writing

Many of us have been taught that grief is bad and should be avoided at all costs. This outlook transforms a natural, healthy experience into something taboo and often results in unnecessary disconnection and isolation. The good news is that grief literacy (knowledge about grief and grief support) is a skill that can be learned. To help you get started, I shared three things to avoid when supporting someone who is grieving, along with three strategies to try instead in this Penn State Outreach blog post. You’ll also find information on WPSU’s grief literacy initiatives: Speaking Grief and Learning Grief.