Supporting children when a pet dies Judith Mulligan SeeSaw doesn’t provide support for children and young people when a pet dies but we do recognise the impact it can have when a much-loved pet dies. For many of us pets are companions, friends, we may tell them secrets, snuggle together, cry to (or even on) them, play with them. For children and young people, the death of a pet may be the first death they experience and is often a way to help them to understand about the life cycle, not just of pets but all living things. We may know the pet is ill and going to die and it is a chance to prepar ..read more

Managing winter celebrations and festivals when bereaved Maddie Bain As we enter the winter months and the nights get darker, we are entering a period of cultural and religious holidays. We’ve recently seen celebrations for Diwali, and over the next couple of months there will be around a dozen celebrations bringing families and friends together.  If you have been bereaved such joyful family-oriented occasions can be difficult to manage. Even if you don’t observe any of these, or plan not to for this or any other year, there is no escaping the lights, the tv shows, the religious services ..read more

supporting communication with grieving young people Annie Brylewska-Cooper Parents and carers’ fears   One of the most common concerns we hear when parents first contact the SeeSaw service is that their young person ‘isn’t talking about it’ [serious illness in the family, or bereavement]. This often leaves parents and carers ‘in the dark’ as to how their young person is coping and processing.    Whether facing terminal illness or dealing with an unexpected death, many parents and carers are concerned their young person is ‘in denial’, or that they haven’t understood what’s happe ..read more

Supporting children transitioning back to school Judith Mulligan Supporting children transitioning back to school Autumn sees the start of a new school year and it can be a difficult time for many reasons. After a long time out of school, for most children, it may take a lot of adjustment for many to settle back into the routine. For some it will be a relief, a chance to catch up with friends, teachers and to resume their studies; lots of children enjoy the structure of the school day as it can help them to feel safe and contained.&nb ..read more

Summer Activities Judith Mulligan   For some the school summer holidays started a few weeks ago, after exams ended or for those attending private schools. For the majority of pupils this week is the first week of the school summer holidays and many families will be looking for fun things to do, if only it would stop raining!    We always say that bereaved children are helped by routine and structure: however, the summer holidays  do offer the opportunity for some down time and fun activities and this is important too. Grief is exhausting and children need time and opportuni ..read more

Eve Robins A personal reflection of my time at SeeSaw After six years at SeeSaw working as a clinical practitioner it is time for me to move on and leave the charity that has been very close to my heart for a long time.  As I leave, I would like to share my reflections on my time with the charity and to consider what I have learned and appreciated whilst working here.  In 2017 when I started at SeeSaw we were in a time of change and modernisation.  Old ways (paper files) were replaced by new (electronic databases) and old models of grief and support were being enhanced with evid ..read more

Separation Anxiety Separation Anxiety   Separation anxiety is a common experience for all children who find it difficult to be away from their parents or carers. Children often worry about how they will cope if their parent is not present, or that harm might come to the parent when they are not with them. Bereaved children, who have already experienced the loss of someone they love, can become particularly anxious about separating from their parents or carers. Depending on the nature of the death they might worry that something else ‘bad’ might happen when they are at school or worry that ..read more

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Managing Mother’s Day when you’re grieving Becki Gascoyne Special days can be difficult when a loved one has died. With Mother’s Day approaching you may be acutely aware of the cards in shops and adverts depicting pictures of families celebrating their mothers. Families tell us that it can feel very confusing to know how to spend these types of days, particularly in the first year after a death. The sense of wanting to remember your loved one, but at the same time worrying it may be too painful to mark the occasion without them can feel conflicting. Pare ..read more

Grief Bursts Judith Mulligan For anyone who has been bereaved ‘grief bursts’ are probably very familiar, even if the term itself isn’t. It refers to the flood of feelings of grief that can be triggered suddenly and felt very intensely. The ‘burst’ can seem to come out of nowhere, or can be connected to an occasion, situation or specific memory. People tell us that it can be linked to a strong sensory trigger such as a smell, piece of music, picture or other image, even the taste or the touch of something, but sometimes there is no identifiable trigger for it.  Children and young people ca ..read more