Let's Talk about Grief
According to a meta analysis conducted by scholars, it was determined that this amount of time is the natural endpoint for grief.
Silly scholars...grieving never ends.
It is not something a person will get over.
It is common for Healing House kids to run up to volunteers and exclaim, "My [person] died." Then maybe add 5-10 seconds of additional information. Soon after, they want to go play in the sand or Hurricane Room. This is how Rachel would describe this phenomenon.
Grief Toast
(Children's perception is concrete and short-range - they are focused on what is being felt in the moment.)
This is one of the five major determinants affecting a person's grief process. This determinant is evident when a sibling dies, as it can turn the child's worldview upside down.
Age
In the 2025 report, Louisiana received this ranking on the CBEM.
4th
(Behind West Virginia, New Mexico, and Mississippi)
Back in 1996, this was Healing House's original name.
The Grief Center of Southwest Louisiana
This is the term used for the human response to any loss.
Grief
Charlie was four-years-old when his grandmother died. He recalls becoming hysterical when the doctor announced they lost grandma. His family became very confused when he started yelling for his family to help find her. This concept best captures Charlie's experience.
Concrete Thinking
(Abstract Thinking Develops Over Time)
This is one of the five major determinants affecting a person's grief process. They can be healthy or unhealthy. (Healing House's caregiver group is an example of this determinant. Hopefully, a healthy example.)
Survivor's Support System
According to the 2025 CBEM, this is the ratio of children who will experience the death of a parent or sibling by age 18 in Louisiana.
1 in 8
About 129,000 or 12.1% of LA's youth
In 1996, a survey of LPSS school counselors was conducted. The results suggested about 700 students were grieving the death of a loved one. In 2021, the survey was recreated. This is the number of grieving students in LPSS reported in 2021.
1,757
Since Billy's father died, he has been asking question after question. How did dad die? What happens after a person dies? What was dad like when he was my age? Additionally, Billy began taking an interest in dad's hobbies. This is the grieving style that best describes Billy.
Instrumental Grief
Rachel begins to become increasingly anxious each time she hears a siren. She exclaims that someone died, regardless of the type of siren. This concept best captures Rachel's experience.
Generalization
In some cases, a loved one might battle with illness for months or years before their death. This opens the door for this type of grief.
Anticipatory Grief
When it comes to the death of a parent, the 2025 CBEM suggests that this is the leading cause of death in Louisiana.
Accidents
(Accidents-40.7% > Heart Disease-11.3% > Homicide-10.2% > Suicide-7% > Cancer-6.5%)
Healing House offers more than grief support groups. They also provide Coping Kits to grieving children in the community. These are the items included in a Coping Kit.
Feelings Doll, Grief Journal, Bottle of Water, Play Doh, Tissue, Crayons, and Information for Caregivers
After experiencing the death of a loved one, many children will have to move homes or move to a new school. This is the term associated with this type of grief.
Secondary Loss
Okay...I'm getting tired. This board has a lot of prompts. My brain is working overtime. Hopefully I haven't made too many mistakes. This is more of a discussion.
This is an important factor when working with a grieving child...
Be honest with the child. Listen. Acknowledge the child's grief. Share. Be creative. Maintain clear expectations. Reassure the child. Create rituals and traditions. Be patient.
While Susan is grieving the death of her child, she is not overly emotional or crying. She is working to create a memorial space for her daughter and a scholarship in her name. Susan's lack of emotion and grief has caused some unease with her support system, though. Because she is tired of her friends' questioning, she decided to display more emotions and force tears. This term best captures Susan's actions.
Dissonant Grief
When it comes to the death of a sibling, the 2025 CBEM suggests that this is the leading cause of death in Louisiana.
Conditions Related to Birth
(Conditions Related to Birth-24.8% > Accidents-23% > Birth Defects-12.3% > Homicide-11% > Suicide-3%)
These are the rooms included in the Children's Wing at Healing House.
Free to be Me Room, Art Room, Hurricane Room, and Talking Room (x2)
(Okay...the Children's Library is back there too.)
Mona is struggling with the death of her partner, who died by suicide. Mona is very religious, and she has historically found relief at her church. Members of her congregation are distant since her partner's death, though. Many have been reluctant to sit with her grief due to the nature of his death. This term best capture's Mona's experience.
Disenfranchised Grief
Jenny remembers a time when she was very young. Her dad punished her, and Jenny had the brief though, "I wish you weren't around." A week later, Jenny's dad died in a car wreck. For months, Jenny blamed herself. This concept best captures Jenny's experience.
Children are Egocentric
A tremendous benefit of support groups with Healing House is having the child, teen, or adult participant learning that they are not alone. They are not the only person grieving the death of a loved one and that their grief is not dictated by a timeline. This is the group counseling term best associated with this phenomenon.
Normalization
While not fully CBEM related, this organization provides free "Tip Sheets" - valuable resources on children's grief.
Dougy Center
This is the overall cost for a child to participate in Healing House's grief support groups.
Nothing
All services are offered to the community free of charge.
(That would be about $2,640 per child for individual therapy, and about about $1,474 if the child has Medicaid.)