|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
|
Living with Loss Support Group meetings set 4:38 p.m., Nov. 14, 2006--Two support group meetings aimed at helping bereaved students during the holidays are set for November and December. The first, “Coping with the Holidays,” is set to meet from 6:30-8 p.m., Monday, Nov. 20, in the Wellspring conference room at 231 S. College Ave. The second, “Stirring Up Old Feelings--Leaving Friends and Going Home,” meets from 6:30-8 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 12, in the Wellspring conference room at 231 S. College Ave. The meetings will be facilitated by Cynthia Diefenbeck, a psychologist in the Student Counseling Center and a clinical faculty member in UD's School of Nursing, and are designed to provide bereaved students with an understanding and supportive network of peers. “Last year, my caseload was filled with clients with grief issues, and I realized that many students talked about how alone they felt,” Diefenbeck said. “The first conversational topic that often comes up in residence halls is, 'Tell me about your family,' and for these students, it's extremely traumatic for them to have to answer such a question right off the bat. My goal has been to set up a group where these students can meet with each other.” Although the support groups meet monthly and typically don't have a holiday-oriented theme, the November and December meetings focus specifically on the holidays, Diefenbeck said, because they often stir up feelings of sorrow and break the expected routine. To address this, the November meeting will focus on coping with loss in the midst of widespread festivity and the December meeting will focus on ways to help students transition from college back to home, where old memories may still reside. “Going back home for six weeks and leaving behind friends can trigger feelings of loss,” Diefenbeck said, “and the support group meetings are designed to ease this transition.” All support groups are free and open to UD students coping with bereavement, and no registration is required. For more information on the meetings, visit [www.udel.edu/livingwithloss]. |
|
|
