Before the broadcast begins each evening, TV news anchors review scripts that are written for them to read on the air. They check for missing words they might stumble over and learn the correct pronunciation of names for people and places.

One phrase TV anchors use at times is “a parent’s worst nightmare,” usually in reference to something like a kidnapping or a serious incident at a child’s school. It also can refer to a child’s death — a life-changing situation that calls for a special kind of grief care for the family of that child after their death.

“A child’s death is impactful and profound; it’s out of the natural order of things,” says Mary, Centrica Care Navigators Grief Support Counselor and facilitator of our Grieving Parents group.

She notes that grief for a child who dies doesn’t have an age limit; someone 8 years old, 15 years old, or 60 years old may have parents who live after their deaths. Centrica Care Navigators is supporting parents of all ages with our six-week Grieving Parents group, 5:00 p.m.-6:15 p.m. Thursdays, January 9-February 13, 2025, at the Centrica Care Navigators office, 7100 Stadium Drive in Kalamazoo. Please register for this group here.

The group is for those grieving the loss of a child beyond infancy. Bronson Hospital offers support specifically for parents of very young children who have died. The Centrica Care Navigators grief support team can help connect a parent in need with the hospital if necessary.

A place to talk

Like all the grief support groups we offer throughout the year, the Grieving Parents group is a place for people to talk about their grief and learn ways to move through and grow around it. Mary says many participants in the Grieving Parents group are thinking about “legacy,” a way to honor the person who died but who didn’t have a chance to live their full life.

This could be something like dedicating a park bench in their name if they were interested in the outdoors. Or it could be something simpler, like taking a quiet moment during their favorite holiday to remember them.

In the group, parents have an opportunity to reflect on their own grief. That’s not always the case at other times; if a parent loses a child, they may have to devote their energy to helping their other children grieve. They might not be able to turn to family members for support like they normally would, since those family members are grieving the loss of the child too.

Parents may have been estranged from a child — for example, a young person who has a substance abuse disorder and lost touch with their parents. Sometimes parents in the group are grieving a loss from years ago, feeling that at that time they simply didn’t have a chance to fully grieve. They were too busy raising children, working, and caring for a partner, their own parents, and others.

Like they have the plague

The group is also a place for grievers to find companionship in each other. Mary says more than once, a parent who lost a child has told her they’re treated like they have “the plague,” even by friends and coworkers.

“Nobody knows what to say to them,” Mary says. “It’s too much reality. It makes people think about their own children.”

Parents who have lost a child — no matter what the age — find support with one another. They talk about how they’re feeling and discover that they don’t have to grieve alone. The connection parents make in the group is strong; Mary says grieving parents have stayed in contact and become friends after the Grieving Parents group has ended, continuing their support of one another.

Discover more here on our website, join us on Facebook and Instagram, or call us at 269.345.0273. You can also register for the six-week Grieving Parents group here.