Healing day brings hope to bereaved families

PATHS volunteer group recently hosted a ‘Reflection and Healing Day’ for individuals and families bereaved by suicide.

The event took place in the Tara Centre in Omagh and was split into morning and afternoon sessions, with guest speaker Dr Brendan Harding focussing on ‘The Inner Journey’ theme and how meditation, mindfulness and Jungian Sandplay are helpful tools to live with loss in the morning.

In the afternoon, those in attendance had the opportunity to sign up for alternative therapy taster sessions.

PATHS is an inter-denominational voluntary group formed to support families and individuals bereaved by suicide.

Members of the group form a bond of friendship arising from their shared experience of having suffered similiar shock, confusion and loss in their lives.

It is within this sage and confidential environment that PATHS’ members share their pain and grief.

As well as providing a safe environment for people to share their thoughts, feelings and emotions, other aims of the groups are to explain the suicide bereavement process, offer one to one counselling and aternartives therapies for members who need them, to provide opportunities to learn from eachother and educate people in healthy coping and healing skills, and to generate new ideas and approaches towards improving services for those bereaved by suicide.

They hold their meetings on the second Tuesday of each month from 8pm until 9.30pm.