We know that small things can make a huge difference. Can you be brave enough to be the one who steps towards the bereaved, acknowledges their loss and offers warmth, love and practical help? Are you able to hold their gaze for just a few seconds longer to demonstrate your solidarity alongside them in their grief? In that moment, you are showing them that you can endure their pain, instead of acting on an urge to fix it or take it away. Surviving The Tsunami Of Grief

Originating from a deep source of compassion for anyone who is bereaved, we wanted to write an illustrated guide to grief because we knew from experience that concentration is hard when you are grieving. There are plenty of illustrated books on grief for children, but for adults? We wanted to reflect the many experiences of grief which can be read as well as visually experienced. Recognition normalises the often-unexpressed feelings people experience when grieving such as fear, shame and even anger.

The sentences we hear most often in our work as bereavement practitioners are: “I think I’m going mad” and “I feel as if I am in a Tsunami of grief.” The powerful metaphor of the Tsunami became the vision for this book and the experiences of all bereaved people we have had the privilege to work with became the backbone of the book.

The book will help both those who grieve and those who want to offer support but maybe don’t feel quite confident enough to know how.  It is also designed as an educational resource for bereavement support groups, teachers, doctors and nurses, among others. Because the book is based on years of bereavement counselling sessions, it has been written in a sessional sequence as if you were receiving counselling sessions. This allows everyone to dip in and out of the book to match where they find themselves on their open-ended grief journey rather than having to read the whole book in one go.

People search for meaning during a bereavement and will look for books to help them understand what they are going through. Our hope was to reach those for whom counselling or bereavement support is either not possible, too expensive, out of area, culturally sensitive or maybe not needed. Books can also be gifted to someone who is grieving or to accompany your letter of condolence.

Through these pages, our wish is that if you are grieving, you may see yourself reflected in some way and therefore feel a little less alone, less fearful and a little more understood.

With warm regards from the UK,

Wendelien McNicoll and Katrina Taee
Surviving The Tsunami Of Grief ~ For The Bereaved and Those Wanting To Support Them

**To learn more about Surviving The Tsunami Of Grief, click here.