|
 For children and young people in Wigan
Borough who may have lost someone close to them, Buds, a bereavement
support group is on hand to offer support.
When someone you know and love dies, it is completely natural to feel a
devastating amount of sadness.
Whether it is a parent, a grandparent, another relative or a friend,
knowing that that person won’t be around anymore can turn your whole
world upside down and leave you with such overwhelming feelings of
sadness, confusion, fear that you believe you’ll never feel any other
way ever again.
In time, some people learn to deal with the loss of a loved one and,
with support, find ways to cope. This doesn’t mean that they hurt any
less, or love the person any less, or even that they are stronger than
those who find it harder to cope. It simply means that they have found a
way to deal with their feelings that works for them.
Yet there lots of others, both young people and adults, who might
struggle to cope with the grief and find it difficult to come to terms
with the emotions it brings. Again, this doesn’t mean that they aren’t
as strong as those who don’t struggle, far from it.
After all, everyone is different, and there’s nothing wrong with
grieving, nor is there any need to be alone.
Thanks to Buds, a bereavement support group for children and young
people in Wigan Borough, if you’ve lost somebody close to you, you can
now meet up with other young people in a similar situation for a six
week series of 90 minute support sessions.
Don’t worry, these aren’t like the support groups you see on the telly,
with everyone sat round in a circle talking about themselves. At Buds,
you get the chance to take part in activities, arts, crafts and games
looking at ways to cope with grief, to explore the thoughts and feelings
associated with bereavement and, ultimately, to meet new people.
With the six week sessions starting anew on a regular basis, everyone
who joins does so at the same time, so there’s no need to be worried
about being left out or struggling to keep up. Everyone joins in from
the beginning, so you’re all in it together and can make friends as you
go along!
Nor do you need to worry about being with people who are much older or
much younger than you, Buds always try to create groups so that all the
children and young people are in groups with people around the same age.
Though you might be sad to leave your new friends once the group is
over, hopefully you’ll leave being able to cope much better with your
grief and there’s always a good chance you’ll be able to meet your
friends again.
Buds regularly run parties for those who’ve been to their groups, so
there’s always a chance to catch up and swap numbers and e-mail
addresses.
And whilst you’re having fun, learning and exploring, your parents and
carers are invited to take part in a separate session, where they’ll be
given support and advice on how to help you through such difficult
times.
Since they first started in 2006, Buds have helped scores of children to
cope with the loss of a loved one, and whilst most people are referred
to the group through teachers and other professionals, if you think this
could benefit you, why not ask your parents to get in touch.
A member of the Buds team will come out to your home to talk to you can
both decide if joining a Buds group would be right for you, if it is,
then you’ll be invited to come along to the Kildare Family Centre in
Hindley every Tuesday for six weeks.
For more information, check out the website at
www.budssupport.co.uk
• Visit our ‘Advice, Services & Information’ page for useful websites
with lots of advice on bereavement and lots of other issues.
►
Return to A Closer
Look At...
|
