Shattered: Surviving the Loss of a Child

"A truly healing book." - Glen Lord, President, The Compassionate Friends

Unthinkable. Unbelievable. Heartbreaking. Whatever words we choose, they all fall far short of the reality. The loss of a child is a terrible thing.

Accidents. Disease. Suicide. School shootings. Murder. Natural disasters. War. No matter how or when, the death of a child (no matter what age) can shatter the heart.

How do you survive this? Can you?

Shattered: Surviving the Loss of a Child was written to help.

Bestselling author, hospice chaplain, and grief specialist Gary Roe uses his three decades of experience interacting with grieving parents to give you this heartfelt, easy-to-read, and intensely practical book. In Shattered, Roe walks the reader through the powerful impact a child's death has - emotionally, mentally, physically, relationally, and spiritually.

Shattered unpacks the depth of this loss, describing how...

• Intense, unpredictable emotions (sadness, anger, guilt, anxiety, fear, depression) can hijack us at a moment's notice.
• Our minds spin. We can't concentrate. We forget things. It feels like we're going crazy.
• Our bodies get hit. Symptoms surface. Our health can be impacted. Illness can invade.
• Our souls feel crushed. Guilt shakes us. What we believe gets challenged.
• Our relationships change. Marriage, family, friendships, and workplaces feel the impact.
• Our plans and dreams are shattered. We're now in uncharted territory.

Yes, the loss of a child affects everything.

In Shattered, you will learn how you can...

• Deal with the volatile, unpredictable emotions assaulting you.
• Manage the massive changes that are occurring in your life and routine.
• Move through feeling overwhelmed and begin to heal.
• Take care of yourself and your health amid all the challenges.
• Honor your child with how you grieve.
• Love those around you, even with a broken heart.
• Navigate spiritual pain and faith questions.
• Turn couple, family, and relational changes into personal growth.
• Support your other children in their grief and parent them well.
• Find the people and resources you need to begin to recover.
• Discover whether counseling would be beneficial for you.
• Live life as well as possible while in great pain.
• Make your child's life count in deep and powerful ways.

If you're a grieving parent or grandparent, this book was written for you.

Shattered is not a magic pill. The death of a child cannot be fixed. But comfort, compassion, guidance, and hope can be found in these pages.

You will never be the same, but you can survive. And to some degree, you can heal. Shattered can help.

Open this book, and let the healing continue.

Shattered was honored as a 2017 Best Book Awards Finalist