Grief resources
Rabbityness
This children’s book is excellent for all ages as it highlights the vibrant colorful impact Rabbit made on the world and the void that is felt when Rabbit no longer is alive. Yet, Rabbit left behind many gifts. There is an emphasis on hope and the lasting gifts of love even when someone is not with us.
one wave at a time
This children’s book is about a boy named Kai grieving the loss of his father. It normalizes the range of emotions one feels when grieving. It emphasizes the way that the emotions roll in like waves, and yet Kai eventually walks through his grief to a place of learning to cope and heal.
the heart and the bottle
This book highlights a typical response to grief in that the main character puts her heart in a bottle for safekeeping after suffering loss. This story resolves when she is able to take her heart from the bottle and resume living again. This is a powerful story that highlights one’s tendency to self-protect from being vulnerable after suffering a loss of any kind.
the invisible string
This children’s book highlights the invisible string as what connects us to one another. We can draw comfort from remembering that people we love are always within reach even when we cannot see them. This inspires connectedness to those we live apart from and miss seeing as well as those we lose and grieve. This reframes loneliness by grounding us in the truth that we are never really alone.
gentle willow
This book is about terminal illness and anticipatory grieving. In this story Gentle Willow’s friends know that they are losing her. They are faced with the pain of this knowledge and yet the opportunity to spend time with Gentle Willow and prepare for the loss. Gentle Willow, too, feels sorrow knowing that her death is coming, and yet draws comfort from the story of the caterpillar’s transformation into a butterfly, reminding Gentle Willow that there is more to her story.
DISCLAIMER: Elizabeth is a member of Amazon Affiliates. If you choose to buy a product from any of these links, Burton Counseling will receive a small portion of the proceeds. You may choose instead to support your local bookstore and buy directly from them. These are book recommendations with therapeutic and character education themes that may or may not be helpful. This is not therapy itself.
Elizabeth B. Burton is a licensed professional counselor and life coach with Burton Counseling, PLLC. Elizabeth lives just outside of Chattanooga, TN., and you can learn about Elizabeth here. You can learn more about working directly with Elizabeth here. Elizabeth also provides support to individuals and groups through an online course on Coping with Anxiety & Stress and through providing workshops. Elizabeth communicates about mental health and well-being through both the Narrating Hope newsletter and podcast as well as through her writing. Elizabeth would love to connect with you and welcomes you to sign up for the newsletter, listen in to the podcast, reach out about working together, and connect on social media.