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There's no need to suffer alone

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Those suffering the death of a loved one don't have to suffer alone.

The Living Through Loss Counselling Society is going to be facilitating a six-week bereavement group starting Tuesday (March 1).

"It's for people who have had a loss through death," said Judy Capes, who will be facilitating the group. "A lot of times people are isolated and they can't figure out why they are feeling the way they are feeling."

The group will discuss coping mechanisms, grief behaviors and feelings. People discuss what their loss was, the grief cycle and talk about how to deal with first holidays or anniversaries without the loved one.

"It's very focused on self care," Capes said.

The group is most beneficial for people who are two to three months into their loss, when family and friends will have moved on or perhaps no longer wish to continually talk about the loved one.

"The dust settles and all the sudden you are left alone," said Wendy Sellers, who learning to facilitate bereavement groups. She is a nurse and has done family court work for BC Corrections. She also worked as a hospital chaplain. "You need to talk until you don't need to talk anymore. It just gives you a place to find like minded people."

Her goal is to have similar workshops in Squamish as often as they are needed. This workshop was funded by a United Way grant focused on bereavement because of the lack of services in Squamish.

"We need it in Squamish so I can hopefully facilitate," she said. "If this one runs we will keep doing that."

She has contacted organizations that have access to grieving people like churches, or funeral services to tell them about the bereavement group so they can refer people to it.

There are few services for grieving people. The hospice was disbanded three years ago.

"It would be really nice to get a hospice back in Squamish," Sellers said.

For more information about the facilitated bereavement group, contact Sellers at 604-898-4981.

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