The Grief Recovery Handbook: The Action Program for Moving Beyond Death, Divorce, and Other Losses

Whether it be the loss of a pet, a loved one, or a marriage, The Grief Recovery Handbook helps grievers who want to embrace life by outlining the principles for a life-changing experience. The authors rely upon their own individual experiences, as well as experiences from others, to show what grief is and how it is possible to recover from the power of that grief. According to this book, recovering from grief means regaining your energy and spontaneity. Often, when a marriage ends, it feels like the death and end to your energy and lust for life. The Grief Recovery Handbook covers specific actions to help the reader complete the grieving process and accept the painful loss of what they once enjoyed in their life.

Excerpt from the Book

The following is a short excerpt from The Grief Recovery Handbook: "Grief is the normal and natural reaction to loss of any kind. Therefore, the feelings you are having are also normal and natural for you. The problem is that we have all been socialized to believe that these feelings are abnormal and unnatural. While grief is normal and natural, it is also the most neglected and misunderstood experience, often by the grievers and those around them. Grief is the conflicting feelings caused by the end or the change in a familiar pattern of behavior."

About the Authors

John W. James is the Founder and Russell P. Friedman is the Executive Director of The Grief Recovery Institute. The Grief Recovery Institute is an internationally recognized authority on grief and recovery from loss. It offers programs on grief and recovery for The Compassionate Friends, The National SIDS Foundation, The National AIDS Network, and The University of California at Irvine, Chapman University.

Other Suggested Books

• Moving On: Dump Your Relationship Baggage and Make Room for the Love of Your Life by Russell Friedman and John W. James. "In this groundbreaking book, authors Russell Friedman and John W. James show readers how to move on from their unsuccessful past relationships and finally find the love of their lives. Demonstrating revolutionary ideas that have worked for thousands of their clients at the Grief Recovery Institute, Friedman and James give readers the strategies they need to effectively mourn the loss of the relationship, while opening themselves up to love in the future." --From Publishers Weekly

• When Children Grieve: For Adults to Help Children Deal with Death, Divorce, Pet Loss, Moving, and Other Losses by John W. James and Russell Friedman. "Coauthors of The Grief Recovery Handbook, John W. James and Russell Friedman join with psychotherapist Leslie Landon Matthews to present When Children Grieve: For Adults to Help Children Deal with Death, Divorce, Pet Loss, Moving, and Other Losses. This compassionate manual addresses the nature of grief, purges common myths the worst of which, the authors claim, is that time heals all wounds (only small, positive actions can heal a person, insist James, Friedman and Matthews) and encourages adults to adopt a more healthy approach to grief themselves, so that they, in turn, can help children." --From Publishers Weekly

• And God Created Hope: Finding Your Way Through Grief with Lessons from Early Biblical Stories by Mel Glazer and Russell Friedman. "Drawing upon the key books of the Old Testament, Glazer uses Old Testament stories as a jumping-off point to explore the main themes of grief recovery, including bargaining, fear, shock and anger, wandering, faith and strength, forgiveness, legacy, creating a new family, and preparing for the future. Glazer devotes particular attention to the "special grief" that he recognizes can arise from the loss through a tragedy." --From Publishers Weekly