On 10th-11th October, our latest Forever Weekend was held at Sedgebrook Hall, Northampton.
Forever Weekends provide families sadly bereaved by meningitis an opportunity to meet with others in the same position.
Participants are often apprehensive and unsure of what to expect but also often feel that it is important to have the opportunity to remember their loved ones with others who have experienced similar trauma.
Form connections
Not only do these weekends offer opportunity to form connections and friendships with others, they provide the opportunity for people to learn about grief and understand the emotional and physical symptoms they experience through grief.
We offer workshops and experiences that people may not think to try themselves and a safe environment for everyone to remember and continue their bond with their loved one.
We were privileged to be able to welcome a multi-award-winning author, Clare Mackintosh, who openly spoke about her grief of losing her baby to meningitis.
Grief is still there, but more manageable
Based on her book I promise it won’t always hurt like this Clare explained how another grieving mother once told her these words and how she could not understand how the level of pain of losing a child could diminish. Yet now she finds that this woman was in fact right. The grief is still there, and so is the pain, but it is more manageable.
Clare’s book is made up of chapters of various promises - she explains her own feelings of guilt, hate, anger and other raw emotions and triggers of her own personal grief.
We also hosted creative writing and aromatherapy workshops, in which we aimed to help people learn a little more about how different smells can help them feel more relaxed or energised, and how the power of writing can aid them through their grief journey.
Feedback from participants included:
“Clare was excellent and relatable. I was sceptical about the activities but thoroughly enjoyed them.”
“Loved the craft activities. Very therapeutic. The aromatherapy I loved, I’m in to this anyway so really enjoyed it”
“Felt a big relief just talking to people who understand”
“Stronger to face the world that will never be the same again”
“Found it very welcoming and useful to connect with other families in a similar situation and amazing support from the team at Meningitis Now.”
“I came away feeling less alone and really enjoyed the venue and evening meal. It was great having all the Meningitis Now support staff to chat to, who are all so kind and empathetic. I miss talking about my loved one and it was a great opportunity to do just that. Thank you so much for allowing me to come and experience this event.”
To find out more about similar upcoming events please visit our Support page.
