Are you dreading the thought of Christmas and New Year without your loved one?
RAISE is a new online grief community aiming to provide support and guidance for those burdened and imprisoned by grief, yet desperate to find a way of surviving the festivities, and actually enjoying this often desperately sad time of year.
The community is hosted by non-fiction writer, Hannah Velten, whose brother, Christian, went missing in Mali, Africa in 2003. Over the course of 14 years, the search for him, living in limbo and fear and denying grief, led to a crash in Hannah’s emotional and physical health. She decided in the run up to Christmas 2017 to find a way to heal her loss, for her sake and that of her parents and her young family.
She shares within RAISE the pathway she found to full healing, which relied on her harnessing the love she felt for her brother. Rather than concentrate on what she’d lost, Hannah began to see the opportunities surrounding Christian’s physical loss: she could rebuild herself, find an alternative way to perceive to the situation, face truths, understand and forgive herself and others, and open herself to all the possibilities which appeared.
Love drove Hannah. Her decision to trust its power lifted her from stagnation and fear into full healing and growth. The sibling bond with Christian is now stronger than ever, despite the loss of his physical presence.
It’s taken Hannah over a year to pluck up the courage to speak up about her experiences of death, grief and loss because these are taboo topics at the best of times. Surely you can’t REALLY heal from a sudden loss, a loss where another was to blame, a loss in mysterious circumstances, a loss where the body was never found, a loss that is every families’ nightmare?!
RAISE is the platform Hannah’s chosen to share her experiences and the lessons she’s learnt, to inspire and empower others to courageously view the loss of a loved one as an opportunity, as a gift not to be squandered. Love is all you need to heal and grow after loss.
And as the nights begin to draw in, it’s the perfect time to find support, friendship and guidance within the RAISE community as Christmas looms. You’ll learn how to:
+ strengthen yourself and practise self-care,
+ listen to your loving voice, rather than the fearful voice keeping you in pain and grief,
+ recognise the sure signs that you still have a strong connection with your loved one,
+ tools and technique to rise above potential trigger moments,
+ rediscover that spark of joy at Christmas.
RAISE encourages the honest sharing of stories and experiences and, to safeguard all, membership is subscription-based. We are offering a HALF PRICE subscription of $13.99/month for the first 500 members to enrol. For that you will receive a PDF of Hannah’s book - Lost & Found: The 8-Pointed Pathway to Healing and Growth after Loss - and access to a wealth of resources, discussion, expert guests, online events and a live (online) meet up on Christmas morning 2019 (GMT).
Hannah aims to create a global community thriving at Christmas, rather than individuals feeling isolated, alone and struggling with grief.
“ I hadn't actually realised how heavily immersed in grief I still am, how it has been dictating a lot of my life, and thank you for showing me this… I came away feeling happy, focused and strong - upbeat and energised. I’m so grateful to you for the journey so far…” (Message from a RAISE member)
Please visit our website raise.mn.co for more details, and we offer a FREE week’s trial to see whether RAISE is the home for you.