Grief Group for kids- Experience?

Castle Queen

Warrior in training
On November 3, hospice in our community is sponsoring a grief group for kids 6-18, for those who have experienced the death of a loved one. It's a daylong event, with breakout sessions in the mornings and afternoons based on age. A few weeks ago, a different organization in a different town hosted one. I was going to bring Knight and Sprite. They rarely talk about their dad anymore. Their reactions to the possibility were not good. Knight said it had been 5 months, he was over it now. (yeah, right) Sprite didn't want a day away from her friends.

Here is an general overview of the purpose:
 
1. To teach youth more about death, grief and loss.
2. To help youth understand their feelings about losing someone close to them through death3. To assist youth in identifying sources of support and methods of self-care.
4. To provide youth an opportunity to share with, and hear from, others of the same age who have experienced the death of someone close.

So..anyone with any experience with this type of event either with or without difficult children? Do I force the kids to go even though they don't want to? Is it gonna be just too much for difficult child?

 

recoveringenabler

Well-Known Member
Staff member
My granddaughter attended a grief group along with her sisters after their dad died. They were 4, 10 and 11 at the time. It was invaluable for them. Different from therapy in that they were with other children who had the same experience so they could understand that their experiences were common, not weird. Grief is a strange emotion for kids, they have no real way to express it so professionals can assist them in allowing the feelings as they are ready. For me, I would gently insist. At their age they don't recognize the value yet.
 
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