Grief Science

When he became an undertaker, Rupert Callender undertook to deal with the dead for the sake of the living. This book is his brilliant, unforgettable story—the life and work of the world’s first punk undertaker—but it's also about ordinary, everyday humanity and our capacity to face death with courage and compassion, to say goodbye to the people we love in our own way.

Evelyn Amdur, a hospice social worker, began to write these stories midway through her career, collaborating with her daughter, Shelley. Many traditional cultures have a custom of "death songs", which rest on the idea that at one's last moment, one somehow sums up the essence of one's life in a phrase or a song. Woven into these stories are instructions on how to die well, not only in what spirit we face death itself, but also through instructions on what is necessary to prepare our families, to ready our estates, and to manage all the players who may be involved in our deaths.

It's time to invite death out of the closet! The impending or actual death of someone close to you can be devastating. It doesn't matter if you knew it was coming, or if it was a total shock-you'll never be the same. There is no right way to grieve, and no appropriate time frame. It's different for everyone. Author and therapist gone rogue, Becky Aud-Jennison, the creator of The Death Dialogues Project and podcast, has sewn together threads from people's shared personal stories and her own experiences.

In this deeply affecting and uplifting book, Janet Wehr shares the real-life stories of her many years as a hospice nurse. Her first-hand account gives illuminating and comforting insight into the spiritual aspect of what occurs in the transition between life and death, highlighting the importance of the mind-body-spirit connection as it manifests in the dying process. It also gives a candid impression of hospices and hospice nurses and the services they can provide. All of Janet’s 46 personal stories are true, fascinating, heart-felt, and thought-provoking.

Grief doesn’t have to be forever. Through storytelling & simple strategies, you’ll take a break from grief, find new ways to hold on to the one you love, and design your life-support system for living with loss … and with joy. In Grieving Us: A Field Guide for Living With Loss Without Losing Yourself, Kimberley Pittman-Schulz shares how tiny sensory rituals and self-supporting practices turned her two-year struggle with sorrow after her mother’s death into deeper meaning and well-being. She also explores anticipatory grief as she helps her husband navigate advanced heart failure.

Was passiert mit deinem Körper, wenn du stirbst? Was fühlst du - Trauer, Schmerz? Und dann, wenn dein Herzschlag verstummt ist? Was geschieht mit deinem Leichnam, bis du bestattet wirst? Wie wird man um dich trauern? Sterben, Tod und Trauer sind unumgänglich, für jeden von uns. Und doch wissen wir kaum etwas darüber. Wer diese Frage stellt, nähert sich einem Tabu - aber auch einer Wissenslücke. Minutiös und eindringlich beschreibt Roland Schulz, was wir während unserer letzten Tage und Stunden erleben.

After her brother died unexpectedly and her mother moved into a dementia-care facility, spiritual travel writer and Episcopal deacon Lori Erickson felt called to a new quest: to face death head-on, with the eye of a tourist and the heart of a pastor. Blending memoir, spirituality, and travel, Near the Exit examines how cultures confront and have confronted death by investigating Egypt's Valley of the Kings, Mayan temples, Colorado cremation pyres, Day of the Dead celebrations, Maori settlements, and tourist-destination graveyards.

It's never too late to do the impossible. Meet Ida Keeling, a 104-year-old mother, activist, and world record-holding runner. Her fierce independence and deep faith carried her through the Depression and the civil rights movement--but her greatest trials were yet to come.

Texas businessman Mike Fechner had it all. Money. Investments. Prestige. Until he did the unthinkable. He sold his company and poured his life's earnings into a ministry for the poor. With a strong faith in God at his core, this millionaire turned missionary envisioned a long future serving the urban Dallas poor and the people of poverty-stricken Africa.

In the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Americans are still struggling with a complex range of emotions. From the Ashes is a collection of extraordinary writings from religious leaders and remarkable citizens whose wisdom will help lead us on a spiritual search toward justice, hope, and healing.

Sieht man ein weißes Licht, wenn man stirbt? Kann mein Körper noch sprechen, wenn ich tot bin? Kann ich zusammen mit meinem Hamster bestattet werden? Kinder fragen klar, offen und ehrlich nach dem Tod. Und genauso muss man ihnen auch antworten. Das ist zumindest die Überzeugung von Caitlin Doughty. Die berühmteste Bestatterin der Welt beantwortet ganz ungeschminkt Fragen von Kindern, die Erwachsene nicht zu stellen wagen. In lustigem, aber immer respektvollem Ton gewährt die Bestatterin so nicht nur Kindern einen Blick hinter den schwarzen Vorhang aus Tabus rund um den Tod.

Mourning: The Day After Loss offers practical advice and insight into the process of coping with grief and bereavement based on extensive experience and research. It leads the listener on a journey through the various stages of bereavement - from the death notification to the formal days of mourning, the burial, and the weeks and months following.

Vanessa's husband, Paul, dies suddenly and tragically on their regular Sunday morning swim. How will she cope with her dilapidated house, her teenage children, the patients who depend on her? Will therapy help? Why do mysterious white feathers start appearing in unexpected places? Beautifully written and honestly relayed, Vanessa uses her professional skills to explore the many questions posed by unanticipated death and to try to find a way forwards.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, an occasion that is sure to be observed around the world. But among the memorials, political speeches, and news editorials, the most pressing consideration - and often the most overlooked - is the lives and well-being of the 9/11 first responders, their families, and the victims' families over the past decade. Dennis Smith, a former firefighter and the author of the bestselling Report from Ground Zero, addresses this important topic in a series of interviews....

By beginning a conversation that encourages self-examination and compassion, Combined Destinies invites listeners to look at how white Americans have been hurt by the very ideology that their ancestors created. Editors Ann Todd Jealous and Caroline T. Haskell, both experienced psychotherapists skilled at facilitating dialogue about racial issues, are cognizant of the challenges that even the thought of such conversations often presents. Their book is based on the premise that for positive and lasting change to occur, hearts as well as minds must be opened.

When a brother or sister dies, surviving siblings often receive little support or recognition of their pain. But their grief is real, and there is a way to recover from it. Through intimate, true stories and interviews with brothers and sisters who have lost a sibling, expert on grief Katherine Fair Donnelly provides valuable insight on how to survive this traumatic experience.

When a loved one passes unexpectedly, the person left behind can lose their bearings. After the sudden loss of her mother, Chelsea Hanson, a nationally recognized grief educator and founder of With Sympathy Gifts and Keepsakes, didn't know where to turn for help, what to do next, or how to put the pieces of her life back together. Hanson's The Sudden Loss Survival Guide gathers everything that she learned during her own recovery process and provides an indispensable road map to aid those who've experienced a life-changing loss.

A collection of Matt Shaw's heartbreaking dramas. Matt Shaw does not just write horror. In fact, when asked what his favorite books are, he often names the tales collected within this set. Stories of heartbreak, loss, and grief - all with an element of hope...a hope we often forget when dealing with grief.

When it comes to the end of a relationship, the loss of a loved one, or even a national tragedy, we are often told we need "closure." But while some people do find closure for their pain and grief, many more feel that closure does not exist and believe the notion only encourages false hopes. Sociologist Nancy Berns explores these ideas and their ramifications in her timely book, Closure.

Charles Shilling is about to begin his day with a funeral… and it will only get worse from there. What seems like a harmless little investigation turns dark fast, and Shilling is in no state to hold back the tide of cruelty coming his way. Worse, with the rate he’s falling for Florin, he’s never been so vulnerable to revenge…