Grief Recovery

Welcome to The Grief Recovery Method at Heaven Scent Bliss. Here we recognise that “grief is a normal and natural reaction to loss” whether that loss is due to the death of a loved one, the end of an important relationship, or one of many other life changing events that can summon grief.

Grief is defined as the “conflicting emotions that follow the ending or change in familiar patterns of behaviour.” At Heaven Scent Bliss we use the Grief Recovery Method, on a one to one basis or in groups to help you move beyond these overwhelming feelings that can rule your life, to a place where you can find some peace.

What is the Grief Recovery Method?

The Grief Recovery Method was developed by John W James and Russell Friedman, founders of the Grief Recovery Institute in the USA, and has helped many tens of thousands of people around the world.

The Grief Recovery Method is an action plan. It is a series of small steps that, when taken in order, by the griever leads to the completion of all the unresolved business linked to the loss. It is a proven action plan to help you move beyond death, divorce and other losses.

Those around you say you have to “let go” and “move on” but they never tell you how! The Grief Recovery Method Action Programme, created and evolved over the past 30 years, not only makes that possible, but provides partnerships and guidance to ensure that it happens.

Carole Henderson set up Grief Recovery (UK) in 2010 in order to increase the number of people with direct access to the Grief Recovery Method in this country. It is a Not for Profit organisation dedicated to helping the greatest number of grievers in the shortest amount of time and offers help to both individual grievers and trains those who wish to help others.

Why I chose The Grief Recovery Method and became a Practitioner

Many grievers having experienced just how little useful help there is out there for people like them, myself included. I chose to learn the grief recovery method after several significant losses. I had left an abusive relationship after 41 years in September 2015. My eldest son is paranoid schizophrenic and had been living on the streets in excess of 10 years. My father’s failing health and deteriorating mental health meant that he was no longer available to me as support. Also my youngest son, daughter-in-law, and grandson live in Indonesia which makes visiting and having contact with them very challenging. After the initial journey of finding myself suitable accommodation to both live and work in and resolving all the issues with regard to the divorce I found that I was feeling lost and vulnerable.

I was very fortunate in finding a grief recovery specialist in a networking group that I attend. After listening to her talk I felt compelled to not only have a personal one-to-one session with her, I also wanted to train as a grief recovery practitioner. I had realised that by healing myself using the grief recovery method principles that once I had completed the training I would also be able to help others in a potent and powerful way. This method can help with death of a loved one, relationship breakdowns, death of a baby, child, pet and loss of occupation and health. Any loss that means you cannot live your life feeling happy and content is still a complex loss and grief issue. I have heard people saying that they can’t understand why they are still feeling bereft when for example they loved one has died many years ago. What I now say to people is without appropriate strategies to bring about the most profound healing, time cannot heal this grief however long it may have been since the actual loss.

I can help people who are experiencing complex loss and grief issues either with one-to-one sessions, or group sessions over several weeks. For people who are not living in the Midlands I’m able to do Skype sessions as therapeutic method of delivering grief recovery method treatments. This also applies to people globally as I currently do Skype treatments to people in: France, Canada, Ireland, USA and the Netherlands with great results. I ensure that after a telephone consultation or face-to-face consultation I create bespoke options to meet you at your point of need. If appropriate, I will also suggest reading materials and signpost you to other helpful organisations for practical solutions.

I am also available for talks on grief recovery including how to write a sympathy card and what to say to someone who is recently bereaved. Whenever we engage with someone with regard to bereavement whether it be a death divorce child or animal loss, we are not trained in what to say to each other. We have been conditioned by what we hear others saying to bereaved people and what was said to us after bereavement. What I love about the grief recovery method is it helps to reduce the grievers’ sense of isolation. Grief Recovery practitioners are encouraged to be non-judgemental, non-critical and compassionate and to always use feeling words. So, saying things such as I know how you feel, he’s in a better place, it was meant to be are very unhelpful to the griever. Whereas I don’t know what to say…., I can’t imagine…., there are no words…., I imagine….. are much more helpful and help develop active
listening skills for those who are grieving.

What I have learnt is that recovering from grief with the grief recovery method is rediscovering what it is that is in your nature to be so that you need not be in conflict with the anymore. If the words that I’ve used have resonated with you and you feel like you want to start the road to grief recovery please email me at annie@heavenscentbliss.co.uk or call me on my mobile (07869) 123065 for a confidential conversation to start you on your journey.