One of the goals I have had for The Relentless School Nurse is to share guest blogs and resources with my readers. Today’s post introduces the important work of Resilient Parenting for Bereaved Families. School nurses can share this valuable resource with families in need. This proactive approach can help families navigate the complexities of grief, bolstering their ability to create a nurturing and stable environment for their children as they cope with loss.
Parenting is a rewarding journey filled with ups and downs, but nothing can prepare a parent for the challenge of raising a grieving child while dealing with their own grief. In partnership with the New York Life Foundation, our team at Arizona State University’s REACH Institute has developed the online Resilient Parenting for Bereaved Families program. This program is designed to provide parents and other caregivers with research-based tools needed to successfully meet the challenges they face.
Program Offers Practical Tools for Bereaved Families
The Resilient Parenting for Bereaved Families online program is designed to provide caregivers with practical tools to help them cope with their grief while parenting their grieving children. The tools are based on research on an in-person group program that demonstrated long-term benefits to reduce depression and prolonged grief of children and their bereaved parent.
Building Resilience through Self-Care
Caregivers often put their own well-being on the back burner while tending to the needs of their grieving children. This program recognizes the importance of self-care. Caregivers learn practical strategies to take small steps towards pursuing their personal goals, to give themselves self-compassion, and to be kind to themselves while they are grieving. Doing so also helps them support their children.
Strengthening Family Bonds and Good Listening
The program emphasizes the importance of creating strong family bonds during this challenging time. Caregivers learn practical tools to establish routines of family time and one-on-one interactions with their children. Active listening helps their children feel understood and to share ways to memorialize their deceased parent, and to cope with their grief in a healthy way.
Setting Clear Expectations
Grief can manifest in various ways, sometimes leading to challenging behaviors in bereaved children. To address this, the Resilient Parenting program provides caregivers with effective tools to establish clear and consistent family rules that help reduce child misbehaviors and create stability within the family and a sense of security for grieving children.
Accessible and Flexible
The Resilient Parenting for Bereaved Families online program is designed to be accessible and flexible. The program comprises ten units, each taking about 30 minutes to complete online Caregivers can choose to complete one unit per week or adjust the pace to suit their needs. After completing each unit, caregivers practice the tools at home, adapting them to the needs of their family.
A Helping Hand for Parents and Caregivers of Bereaved Children.
The Resilient Parenting for Bereaved Families program is a remarkable resource for caregivers navigating the complexities of supporting grieving children while tending to their own grief. The program is currently being offered for free to parents and caregivers of parentally bereaved children ages 6 through 17 whose parent has died as part of their participation in a program evaluation. Click here for more information about the program and how caregivers can get involved.
We are offering parents and caregivers of children ages 6 – 17 years whose parent has died to receive the online Resilient Parenting for Bereaved Families program for free as part of their participation in the program evaluation project. Below you will find a flyer that has details about how you can participate in the evaluation and a video that describes the program.
Our Focus
This website brings together the work of the Resilient Parenting for Bereaved Families at Arizona State University REACH Institute to disseminate the most current information and practical tools to promote healthy adaptation of bereaved children and their parents and caregivers. This online resource is supported by our partnership with the New York Life Foundation. We provide information and practical tools both to the professional community that provides services to bereaved families and to parents and caregivers.
eRPBF Enrollment flyer (004) 9 7
eRPBF Program Description (004) 0 7
