Anyone who has lost a loved one knows how hard it can be to move on. It is not uncommon to hear a widow utter, “What am I going to do now?” In Solace: Finding Your Way Through Grief and Learning to Live Again, this and many other questions are answered with great style and compassion.
What is Bereavement
Solace can be hard to find in the days following a loss. Dr. Themes begins her book with a message of hope for all of her readers. Her empathy is apparent in every paragraph as she comforts the reader and prepares them for the journey ahead. The first several pages contain a mental hug and a lot of encouragement that immediately begin to bring a bit of peace and comfort.
The stages of the grieving process and bereavement are outlined for the reader along with heavy reminders that whatever the reaction to a loss may be, it is the right one. Dr. Themes spares no explanation and covers common feelings and reactions during the grieving stages. She is careful to generalize and leave no one out of her compassionate embrace.
Finding Your Way Through Grief and Learning to Live Again
Included in Solace: Finding Your Way Through Grief and Learning to Live Again are many resources, helpful tips and caring advice. Dr. Themes points out that most grieving is natural and will pass in time, but in the event that grief is too intense there is help available. She helps the reader to see the situation more clearly and begin to look for light at the end of the tunnel.
There are chapters on how grief may affect different people. Children have their own way of viewing the world and they have earned their own chapter in this book. No one is left wondering how to deal with their own situation as the information unfolds.
Support During Grief
Possibly the best feature in Solace is the personal accounts from people who have suffered losses of their own. These are generously peppered throughout the book and vary greatly from person to person. These sections offer stories, tips and advice from people who have been through the grieving process and are reaching out to the people who are going through it now. These firsthand accounts are very real and leave the reader with the comforting feeling that they are not alone.
Another great feature of this book is the lengthy list of resources for support groups and other ways to reach out. There are multiple places online and off to receive support and love during bereavement and Dr. Themes covers them all in great detail.
To anyone going through a period of mourning, this book delivers exactly what it promises, Solace. The reader is left with feelings of hope and the knowledge that life is still possible, even after the loss of a loved one.
Solace: Finding Your Way Through Grief and Learning to Live Again AMACOM (July 2009), ISBN 978-0-8144-1463-7
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