The project will be a collection of 3 groups, (each following the other time wise) with each group being 6 weeks long, and each one allowing up to 12 men to take part. The sessions will focus on each man's bereavement issue and their associated grief and make use of his peers and the specialist knowledge of the facilitator to support them with shared experiences and strategies in understanding and dealing with their loss and the reaction to it. The sessions will be a safe place for men to disclose and encounter their feelings, emotions, fears and future plans - to challenge stereotypes and the stigma of grief; and with being a bloke find ways of dealing with their individual sense of loss through group support, facilitated by trained counsellors.
What we'll deliver:
- Support men to engage with their grief and the emotions it creates
- To identify strategies in supporting their grief journey
- To identify a purpose out of loss
- To share their experience and gain support from other blokes
- To destigmatise greif and provide some clarity about how it works
- To provide a grief outlet for men lacking in Wolverhampton
- To empower men with an emotional response to their grief
- To reduce possible future mental and emotional issues associated with not facing grief
Why it's a great idea:
Men don't generally deal well with emotions or feeling when faced with difficult life issues which can result in further anxieties or depression and possible suicide ideation. Grief is no exception: men tend to suppress their grief responses because its seen as weak or needs a practical solution. The BG2 groups allow opportunity to challenge these views and provide a venue for men to accept, deal with and step forward with their grief. To find support from other blokes and recognise grief, though individual can't be pigeon holed. The groups also allow participants to create a support network between themselves beyond the 6 weeks, and in the community to share with others what they have gleaned from exploring their own loss and grief, including destigmatising the view that men who grieve or engage with emotion are in some way weak. There is also an absence of this type of group in the area.
Steps to get it done:
- Initial event to publicise the groups
- Members coming to first group
- Completion of first group
- All groups complete
- Completion event highlighting successes of the groups and the project
The project does not really fit into the categories but the effects of it would impact ultimately on all of the areas listed; since someone finding a way to deal with their loss and grief would mean they could begin to function more in society and therefore provide an impact in other areas of their life.
