Seasons for Healing
Seasons for Healing is a culturally appropriate small group education program for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults who are managing experiences of change, loss and grief.
The program was developed by Good Grief in partnership with Aboriginal Family Support Services (SA) with funding provided by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Healing Foundation.
Seasons for Healing is offered in response to requests from Aboriginal communities for respectful, collaborative support in responding to the impact of intergenerational loss and grief.
Seasons for Healing draws on the story of the seasons to talk about experiences of change, loss and grief. The differences between seasons, the changes in seasons from year to year and their cyclical nature are all part of the story of the seasons, and this shared story allows people to learn and reflect on their own life experiences in a safe and familiar context.
The four seasons each link to one of J. William Worden's (4th ed, 2009) four tasks of grief:
* Accept the reality of the loss
* Process the pain of grief
* Adjust to a world without the person/place/thing
* Find an enduring connnection with what has been lost in the midst of embarking on life
What people say about Seasons for Healing
"It was nothing that I had expected. It was much better. Its positive spin makes you want to participate. I never thought I would be laughing in a grief and loss program. It wasn't what I expected. No one thinks positive when you think of grief and loss."
"The things it made me think of - wow, did that come from my own brain?"
"There were lots of activities to do. The activities helped us to voice it - having it in front of you helped to release it in words."
"Different ages can learn from each other. We learnt from the oldies and the youngies learnt from us. It gives balance?"
FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT: MANDY COX mandy.cox@mackillop.org.au
Seasons for Healing Evaluation Report 2014