Healing the Adult Sibling's Grieving Heart: 100 Practical Ideas After Your Brother or Sister Dies (Healing Your Grieving Heart series)

130 Pages·2008·1.22 MB·English

by  Alan D. Wolfelt PhD

HEALING THE ADULT
SIBLING’S GRIEVING HEART
Also by Alan Wolfelt:
Creating Meaningful Funeral Ceremonies:
A Guide for Families
Healing a Child’s Grieving Heart:
100 Practical Ideas for Families,
Friends and Caregivers
Healing a Friend’s Grieving Heart:
100 Practical Ideas for Helping Someone
You Love Through Loss
Understanding Your Grief:
Ten Essential Touchstones for Finding
Hope and Healing Your Heart
The Wilderness of Grief: Finding Your Way
Healing Your Grieving Heart for Kids:
100 Practical Ideas
The Journey Through Grief:
Reflections on Healing
Companion Press is dedicated to the education and
support of both the bereaved and bereavement caregivers.
We believe that those who companion the bereaved by
walking with them as they journey in grief have a
wondrous opportunity: to help others embrace and grow
through grief—and to lead fuller, more deeply-lived lives
themselves because of this important ministry.
For a complete catalog and ordering information, write or call:
Companion Press
The Center for Loss and Life Transition
3735 Broken Bow Road
Fort Collins, CO 80526
[phone]
www.centerforloss.com

HEALING THE ADULT
SIBLING’S GRIEVING HEART
•
100 PRAcTIcAL IDEAS
AfTER YoUR BRoTHER
oR SISTER DIES
•
ALAN D. WoLfELT, PH.D.
Fort Collins, Colorado
An imprint of the Center for Loss and Life Transition
© 2008 by Alan D. Wolfelt, Ph.D.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any
form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise, without prior permission of the
publisher.
Companion Press is an imprint of the
Center for Loss and Life Transition,
3735 Broken Bow Road, Fort Collins, Colorado 80526
970-226-6050
www.centerforloss.com
Companion Press books may be purchased in bulk for sales
promotions, premiums or fundraisers. Please contact the pub-
lisher at the above address for more information.
Printed in the United States of America
11 10 09 08 5 4 3 2 1
ISBN: 978-1-879651-29-6
This book is lovingly dedicated in memory of Mitch Anderson.
Mitch Anderson and his sister, Amy

foREWoRD
Seven years ago, my life changed forever.
It started with the fateful phone call from my panic-stricken
mother. I will never forget that conversation. The moment in
time is as real now as it was that day. Her piercing words are still
ringing in my ears. The scream that erupted from my own lungs is
still vivid and painful. My exact location, my clothing, the weather
and even the short drive I had in front of me is so real, as if it just
happened.
Her words were, “Amy, your brother is dead.”
And everything changed.
My future changed.
My past changed.
My life changed.
Forever.
My strong, intelligent, “on-top-of-the-world,” entrepreneurial,
well-liked, supportive, understanding, funny, charming, loving adult
brother was gone. My best friend and confidant was gone. Forever.
And my life would never be the same.
My dreams for him, for our future together, were gone. I would
never have a sister-in-law, a niece or nephew, a large Christmas
gathering full of family…my family. The reality that I was “it”—
alone, the only child, the only person left to take care of our