What is hope in grief

Tools for finding hope along the journey: Understanding hope


Hope is a verb defined as “to cherish a desire with anticipation” 
Hope is also a noun “ a desire accompanied by expectation of or belief in fulfillment”
Either way hope is the belief that a desire will be fulfilled. In grief many people feel that there is no hope. In order to find it we need to look at what do we desire? To have our lov

ed ones back? Well there is no hope of that and if that remains our only desire than there is no hope. What other things do we desire or hope for? A content life? Loving relationships? A life with purpose? There is hope for all these things and more. Look around you, hope is walking with you when you are ready to see it.
Artwork by Tanya Lord
About the Artist

Tanya Lord was a special education teacher when Noah died. After his death she read The Institute of Medicine’s report To Err Is Human and realized that the errors responsible for her son’s death were not unique. This created a desire and determination to better understand and work towards improving health care. Currently she has completed a master’s degree in public health and a PhD in clinical and population health research and is completing a post-doctoral fellowship. Lord shares her personal and professional experiences in presentations and workshops for medical staff and students focusing on the importance of effective communication with patients before and after an error. She also is a co-founder of The Grief Toolbox (www.thegrieftoolbox.com), which offers tools to help those along the grief journey. Lord may be contacted at [email protected]