The Ten Pathways Journey to Grief Relief gives the opportunity of having a structured format and programme to work on, stressing accessibility and support, consistency and routine. People in grief who are helped along the Pathways soon know what to expect in sessions, which in turn becomes an anchor for many in their grief, through the benefits having this structure, which builds upon itself, guided by the practitioner but with the client absolutely having control and autonomy for themselves, balanced with the support of the practitioner and of peers, a way forward to hope and a new normal can be acquired. It is equally useful for 1-2-1 work and for use with children, young people or adults in care facilities.

 

After loss there are many organisations which offer Grief Counselling, all of them vital and all of them totally over sponsored with minimum waiting list upwards of 6 months, limited time for each individual who may be afforded a 6 session course and with (some find) off putting on line forms to complete, many people report finding these totally over whelming in their time of loss and are then reluctant to explore other options.

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The Ten Pathways aims to be one of two things:

 

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• Firstly, we can be a standalone offering, providing ongoing, weekly or bi-weekly group sessions open to all, regardless of when their loss occurred, we aim to make these affordable and accessible either through funding or ‘pay what you can’ schemes.

 

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• Secondly, these sessions can become a bridge between loss and formal counselling, being there immediately someone needs help, offering a safe space and a structure proven to help, along with peer support – an anchor to lean on, giving some solace and hope at the rawest of times.

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What makes this Ten Pathways different to conventional therapy or drop in Grief cafes?

The work is totally sustainable in everyday life, it has a huge ‘human’ connection and encourages people to use the strategies learnt through very simple (but scientifically proven) techniques and 'Emotional Zoning'. It is a humanistic backed programme with footholds in psychology, developed through training of course, and additional research and CPD but equally importantly, through years of experience of working with those in grief from many different losses and from years of lived experience. It is ongoing for as long as a person requires the support, so service users never have the feeling of abandonment (which, let’s face it can already be present in grief) it is not a six-week programme delivered by a Counsellor or Therapist which is a traditional offering, and it builds healthy habits straight away from the first session.

 

The Service user does not build reliance on the Therapist or Counsellor which can happen in some cases, as the person engaged in the Ten Pathways maintains that autonomy at all times, the practitioner empowers the client to become their own counsellor. It is human contact with human beings, the service users are not patients, they are equal in all ways in all sessions, and their input is valued, listened to and heard, acted on and respected.

 

Practically, most of the pathways are very simple and one or two more complex, some needing hardly any input from a practitioner, but still needing planning and others needing quite some thought. However all Pathways allow for ample opportunity to simply chat and share but have a tangible and relatable progression giving an anchor for those using the Pathway, and develop a feeling of hope and optimism – something to hold onto and guide them.

The Ten Pathways can intermingle, intertwine, move and reconfigure, be repeated and adjusted, used in conjunction with each other, returning as often as needed along any one pathway, but always starting with ‘Begin’ and moving towards ‘Home’.

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Practitioner Training Options

 

There are two tiers of training to become a Ten Pathways Practitioner.

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1) The Full Ten Pathways Training

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Those opting for the full Ten Pathways training, will take a face to face 3-day course, these courses will be offered in accessible geographical areas, or I will come to you for minimum number of Delegates. During the training Delegates will receive a manual covering the 20 Modules in detail containing a full background of the Ten Pathways, exploring Grief and it’s mental and physical effects, background research to substantiate the methods, session plans and extension ideas to cover the full journey, marketing and fundraising signposts, how to run a hub, how to protect yourself as a Practitioner and each of the Ten Pathways will be covered in detail to ensure anyone opening a hub is fully prepared and confident to do so.

 

The 3 day face to face will work through the manual, module by module, with plenty of time to discuss and share thoughts, we will engage in the activities as discussed in order to experience them before passing them onto service users, we will role play, however much this can unnerve some people it is vital to ‘practice’ in a controlled environment, to make mistakes together, to iron out any issues and to highlight any amazing ideas that come out during these opportunities. For those that do find the idea of role play off putting remember that you will be working with people who are very vulnerable, it much better to have the chance to be in different scenarios in role play than with someone who could be adversely impacted in a real situation.

Additionally, those taking the full course will have the opportunity to enrol for a small monthly subscription, to have access to 12 months online support with myself by prior arrangement. This support might cover advise on a certain service users needs, how to handle a particular issue that arises or as a friendly ear to help process the experiences you are helping with and to mentally protect yourselves.

 

This option is most suitable for Community Practitioners who may seek funding to introduce such hubs, Celebrants who wish to expand their knowledge and introduce the hubs as additional income, Funeral Industry operatives who may wish to offer the ongoing service and others.

Their will be an application process for the course.

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2) The Abridged Ten Pathways Training

This option may be suitable for those already hosting Grief or Bereavement Cafes and would like to introduce more of a structured format. Simply covering, in a one-day course the Ten Pathways and the appropriate input, activities, prompts and outcomes.

 

Optional access by small monthly subscription to 6 months support, by arrangement online as above.

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Please do reach out to me for more information and costings about the Ten Pathways Journey, if you personally need support, if you would like to enquire about a Grief Relief café or if you are interested in the training programme.