Emma Payne · 8 October 2019
Grief Support
Virginia Mason's Grief Services clients in Seattle can now receive personalized, text-based support from Grief Coach.Read more
Emma Payne · 29 September 2019
Grief Support Loss of a Parent Mom
"The messages you've been sending my Mom have been extremely helpful. Her last text was especially relevant as she's getting ready to go to her high school reunion, where she'll see classmates who knew my father. She is preparing herself to share the story of my father’s death with them, and your messages are helping."Read more
Emma Payne · 24 September 2019
Grief Support Media Sympathy Gift
Grief Coach subscriptions are thoughtful, long-lasting sympathy gifts, now offered in partnership with GiveInKind, a company that makes it easy for people to coordinate schedules, create wishlists, and even pull funds together, when someone they care about needs a little extra help. GiveInKind sites are a lovely way for friends and family to support someone who is grieving.Read more
Emma Payne · 21 September 2019
Grief Support Podcast Media Male Grief
I had a lot of fun recording an interview with Irene Weinberg last month. Irene hosts a podcast called Grief & Rebirth, and asked great questions about why I started Grief Coach, how our messages work for people who are grieving, and also how friends and family members can buy subscriptions as the "ultimate condolence gift."Read more
Emma Payne · 20 September 2019
Stillbirth Grief Support
A few months ago a young woman purchased a Grief Coach subscription when her baby was stillborn. She was devastated about the loss of her son, but was also struggling with feelings of isolation. Her best friend had flown across the country to help with the new baby, but when she found herself dealing with a death instead of a birth, she left, claiming: “I don’t know how to be with you when you’re like this.”Read more
Emma Payne · 28 August 2019
Grief
Are flowers and casseroles what you really want when you’re grieving? Probably not. Here’s how to get the invaluable support you need after a loss.
I’ll never forget a conversation I had with my friend Alison the week after my husband died. I had just moved from the UK to Canada, and was getting set up in a hastily booked apartment. Alison asked me what I needed. “Nothing,” I said, unable to think straight about much of anything. “Do you have any sheets to sleep on tonight?” she asked. “No,” I said. “How about plates or utensils or food?” she continued. “No, I don’t have those either.” We laughed, and Alison proceeded to do the thinking for me. I was lucky.Read more
Emma Payne · 2 August 2019
Hospice Bereavement Outcomes
Now hospices can meet the growing demand for bereavement support with regular tips and reminders delivered via text
Since launching Grief Coach, I’ve been asked time and time again if I find it depressing doing this work. The answer is always, always no.
I don’t find this work depressing — in fact, I’ve never been happier at work than I am today.Read more
Emma Payne · 16 July 2019
Grief Grief Support
When someone we know loses a loved one, it’s hard to know what to say or do.
We often struggle with our own fear and discomfort. We don’t know how to help. And instead of reaching out to the griever, we shrink away, hoping they will eventually return to “normal.”
But it’s a fallacy to think that life will go back to normal for the griever. Instead of going away, grief becomes the new normal. And that silence, that lack of outreach, can become a widening gap that’s more and more difficult to bridge.Read more