Focus on Grandparents
Death of a Child: Focus on Grandparents
Unfortunately, there are such situations, when young children die. Although such situations happen, they seem to be absolutely unnatural. Parents should not outlive their children. The same concerns grandparents. When a child dies, in the majority of cases people focus their attention on his parents and their grief. However, pain and grief of grandparents can be even deeper. It is crucial to take care of grandparents in such situations, provide assistance and support.
In my opinion there is an urgent need in creation of special support programs, which will help grandparents to cope with their grief and go through this difficult situation. First of all, such program should include communication with other grandparents, who have the same experience in their life. It is crucial to be able to communicate with people, who understand you. Grief of grandparents is unique and it is not similar to feelings experienced by parents or other relatives. Special meetings can be organized for grandparents. Grandparents should be able to talk and cry if they need.
Apart from group meetings, there are a lot of opportunities in Internet, where grandparents can communicate and share their experiences. It is rather important to see that your situation is not sole and there are other people who have the same problems.
Finally, I suggest that one more important step to overcome grief is communication with parents of a child. Grandparents should be able to communicate with their children. It is crucial for them to discuss existing situation and express feelings. Grandparents should talk with their children, speak about their grandchild, and pronounce his or her name. Without doubts, recovery will take a long period of time. However, mentioned above steps can be rather helpful and make this process more comfortable.
References
Tiegert, V. (n.d.). Ways to Help Grandparents Deal with the Death of a Grandchild.
Helium:Grief and Loss. Retrieved from http://www.helium.com
