Working with children and young people who have been bereaved is my daily role

I have worked at the Hospice for the most part of 10 years. It is a challenging role providing the flexible support needed by children of a variety of ages and backgrounds. While there is diversity and difference with the families I meet, there is a common factor - each young person has experienced a loss of someone they love.

They display various emotions of anger, bewilderment, shock and tears. This is ‘normal behaviour‘ for children in their position.

I slowly build our relationship by allowing the children the space and time they need to start trusting the process of our sessions.

Art is a useful tool to help children express their feelings and make sense of what is going on. We engage with the young people with the following activities:

• Memory boxes represent a young person’s feelings towards the person they have lost. They will often take weeks to finish their own special design and then they bring in their collection of memorabilia to keep safely within their treasure box.
• Picture Frames are an opportunity for children to decorate and frame a special photograph of their loved one and express themselves and their feelings.
• Clay Modelling is another favourite as this is a soothing material for them to process and work through some of their difficulties.
  

I have had the opportunity to watch their process and start to feel their light returning to them.

For some families it can take longer than others, there is no measure to how long we work together.

We give our families any guidance and information they may need, to help them understand the process that children & young people face with their loss.

I strongly believe that bereavement and pre-bereavement therapy helps young people bring back the hope in their lives.