Grief Dreams Newsletter Winter 2017

Grief Dreams Newsletter

WINTER 2017 Every night you are my last thought before I slip into sweet dreams, where my only hope is you will be there to meet me. ~Stephanie Melish

Thank you for your interest in the grief dreams newsletter! We have lots of exciting news to share!

We hope 2017 has been a positive year thus far for you. Joshua Black has been very busy since the last newsletter promoting the topic of grief dreams. Many people continue to be surprised by the topic, and the impact it can have on people’s lives. Since the last newsletter, Joshua has been featured in four newspapers discussing the topic. Additionally, he has been interviewed on different live radio shows and podcasts (see full list on www.griefdreams.ca under media/articles). A first for Joshua (in October) was that he took live calls from listens when he was interviewed on Coast to Coast AM (with George Noory). Also, Joshua helped organize and host the 1st Annual Children’s Grief Awareness Event at Brock University in November. At the event, he was able to shed considerable and much needed light on children’s grief dream experiences.

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Grief Dream Story Submitted by Robert Petsche Robert Petsche recounted a story of how his

smile. He knew it was her, simply because he

son’s dreams of the deceased helped him as he

noticed her gold tooth. You could always see it

moved forward in his grief journey. On January

when she really opened her mouth in a wide

19th of this year, Robert’s wife (Donnie) died. He

smile. She looked really happy.

has not had a dream of her yet, but his son had.

Robert shares the 3 dreams his son had (first

The night after Donnie’s death his son had his third dream. His mom was a young girl

two were before she died). The first dream his son

(about 14-16 years old) sitting with a bright

had was at the end of December (2015), a couple

colored spring or summer dress on in the

weeks before she died. His son dreamt that he was

middle of this beautiful grassy area with trees in

in his bed thinking he just woke up and there was a

the background. There were all these young

bright light was shining on his face. Not super

children that were playing all around her on the

bright, almost like when the full moon comes

grassy field. They were jumping and crawling

through the window. He couldn’t open his eyes,

on top of her…like they had not seen her in a

but he wasn’t afraid. He heard a man’s voice softly

long time (almost a reunion of sorts). What

speaking to him “don’t worry everything will be

was strange about this was the next day his son

alright”. It was then his son woke up for real and he

saw a black and white photo of his mom. His

said to himself ‘weird dream’. In the next couple

son commented that it was the same type of

days his mom (Donnie) had a heart attack.

dress and on a grassy terrain (as a teenager)

His son’s second dream was the day before she died. He saw his mom (Donnie) riding on the back of a very large white horse as a passenger, high

from the dream. His son stated he had not recalled ever seeing that photo before.

These dreams shared by his son helped

in the clouds above. The person steering the horse

Robert in his grieving process. He stated it

could not really be made out. The same bright

brought him great comfort knowing she is OK.

white light he saw in his earlier dream was in this

He hopes this story can be a source of comfort

one as well. The light was radiating from the horse

as others go through their grief journey. This

and the person in control of the horse. His mom

story showcases the beautiful effect a shared

was looking back and waving at him with this big

dream can have within family.

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The Grief Dreams Podcast has shown great success over the last 14 episodes, with over 1300 downloads. The

We want to hear from

podcast continues to grow with each episode as awareness expands. It has been a fun learning curve for Joshua Black and Shawn Ram. They are pleased to have better sound quality for Episode 11 (which is a full review of the journey in 2016) and on. Additionally, they have figured out how to record interviews on the telephone and through Skype. This will allow them to interview people from around the world and hear their grief journey with dreams.

Joshua and Shawn’s goal this year is to be able to produce a podcast each week starting in February. As a way to

you!

If you are interested in being a guest on our Grief Dreams Podcast or have your story featured in our newsletter, please forward us your story and what you would like to share!

You can submit any inquiries to griefdreams@gmail.com

produce a podcast each week they have included a guest host (Jade Black) to fill in periodically when Joshua is away to tend to other tasks. The podcast episodes are featured on iTunes, PodBean.com, Stitcher, Overcast,

Editors:

and many other podcast platforms (just search Grief

Jade Black, MA

Dreams).

Joshua Black, PhD (student)

Grief dreams newsletter

WINTER 2017

Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook Grief Dreams is on now on Instagram and Twitter (under the handle @griefdreams). Follow us for grief and bereavement related content intended to both raise awareness and inspire!

Also, if you are not already aware we have a group on Facebook titled Grief Dreams. We use the space to share stories of loss and inspire each other to move forward in healing. Please feel free to join us there!

Newsletter subscriptions are FREE. To subscribe visit our website www.griefdreams.ca

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New Research Article is published!

A research article titled “Dreams of the deceased: Can themes be reliably coded?” by Joshua Black and 5 others has been published in the International Journal of Dream Research. This article can be viewed on the grief dreams website (under Joshua Black’s Bio).

Some interesting findings: • Eight common themes were found to be reliably coded: 1) Rationalization, 2) Dead, Dying, or Ill, 3) Discomfort, 4) Comfort, 5) Healthy and Happy, 6) Help-Crossing-Over, 7) Separation, and 8) Other • When investigating dream attitudes: o 67.1% stated that dreams of the deceased helped them believe more in an afterlife o 70.9% stated dreams of the deceased helped them feel more connected with the deceased