Navigating Grief During the Holidays: Planning Ahead to Manage Difficult Times

5:00 pm to 7:00 pm EST

LIVE WEBINAR

Presenter: Gae Savino, LCSW, CT & Linnie Larson, Pickering, LMSW

NASW-NYS Members: $20

NASW Other Chapter Member: $20

Non-Members: $50

NASW-NYS Student and Transitional Members: FREE

This workshop is approved for 2.0 continuing education credit hours for licensed social workers, licensed mental health counselors, licensed marriage and family therapists and licensed psychologists

Workshop Description

Under normal circumstance, the holiday season can be a stressful time. When grieving the death of a loved one, holidays may be especially challenging. Unexpected & overwhelming emotions may suddenly arise. However, these anticipated moments can be managed. This workshop offers practical skills and strategies to provide comfort, support & techniques to both manage the grief & practice self-care while navigating the holiday season.

The workshop spotlights 10 C's to cope with grief. It highlights the whole mind-body impact of grief & examines case studies focused on the benefits of “Write Your Script” to plan ahead for difficult moments. It provides “Do & Don’t” guidelines to help one stay in control, anticipate, take it easy and recognize that there is no right or wrong way to get through the holidays after the death of a loved one. We examine how to incorporate familiar rituals/customs/traditions with a twist to help cope. The emphasis is not on leaving a loved one behind. It is going forward and continuing our bonds with them in new ways during the holiday season.  

Learning Objectives

After the completion of this webinar, participants will be able to:

• Define loss & grief, types of grievers, the dual process model of grief & the components of the tasks of mourning vs stages of grief.
• Identify coping strategies & therapeutic interventions to help navigate grief.
• Communicate grief as a whole-body experience.
• Write a script to manage difficult moments.
• Describe the Do's & Don'ts of planning ahead to reduce the impact of self-imposed expectations yet incorporate new traditions as a form of continued bond with a loved one.

This workshop is approved for 2.0 continuing education credit hours.

NASW-NYS is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed social workers (Provider ID #0014), licensed mental health counselors (Provider ID #MHC-0053), licensed marriage and family therapists (Provider ID #MFT-0037) and licensed psychologists (Provider ID #PSY-0088).

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Presenter:

Gae Savino, LCSW, CT, is a licensed clinical social worker & certified death, dying & bereavement counselor. Gae provides mental health, end-of-life & grief counseling for individuals 18 years+ in her Westchester private practice. She is Founder of Mindful Heart Counseling Services. Gae received her Master’s in Social Work from Fordham University's Graduate School of Social Service. Gae did post graduate training at Columbia University’s Center for Complicated Grief. Additional training included the College of New Rochelle's Graduate Certificate Program in Thanatology, Calvary Hospital & The Bereavement Center of Westchester’s Tree House Program. She facilitates a variety of bereavement support groups: Death due to Addiction, Spousal, Parent, COVID Loss & Long Haulers due to COVID. She serves as an associate counselor with Catholic Charities Parish Counseling Network & its EAP. Gae served as an active volunteer with the WMCHealth Caregiver’s Center providing bereavement support for staff & family members in the Level I Trauma & medical ICU’s throughout the hospital. Gae is a frequent workshop presenter on issues of death, dying, bereavement, complicated grief & the multifaceted impact of COVID.  

Linnie Larson, Pickering, LMSW, received her BA in English from the University of Pennsylvania & her Master’s Degree in Social Work from Columbia University, where she won the Dean’s Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement. Linnie did extensive post graduate training at Columbia University’s Center for Complicated Grief. She is a specialist in the prevention of domestic violence, child abuse, suicide, sexual assault, & has been a provider of Mandated Reporter Training in Child Abuse & Neglect/Maltreatment Identification in New York. She has worked on New York State suicide, crisis, & domestic violence hotlines. She has developed & presented workshops on the above topics at both national & international schools & educational conferences. She currently has a private practice in Rye, NY with a focus on loss/grief, & is a frequent workshop presenter on topics related to loss, death, dying & bereavement. In addition, Linnie co-facilitates online COVID-19 Bereavement Support. Over the past year, Gae & Linnie have written & presented professional development programs & training courses for NASW & CHI Professional Development that provide CEU credits. These have included: Covid-19’s Impact on Loss &Grief; Online Bereavement Support Groups & Their Role During Covid-19; Navigating Grief During the Holidays: Planning Ahead to Manage Difficult Timesd. Additionally, Gae & Linnie serve on an international bereavement peer review consultation support group.