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 us this heartfelt, easy-to-read, and intensely practical book. In Shattered, Roe walks the reader through the powerful impact a child's death can have - 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, and friendships feel the impact.

- Our plans and dreams are shattered. The future has changed. We're in uncharted territory.

Yes, the loss of a child affects everything.

In Shattered, you will discover 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 uncertainties and faith questions.

- Turn couple, family, and relational upheaval into personal growth.

- Support your other children in their grief and parent well through this.

- Find the people and resources you need to begin to recover.

- Decipher whether counseling or grief coaching would be beneficial for you.

- Live life as well as possible while in the midst of great pain.

- Make your child's life count in deep and powerful ways.

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.

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

We will never be the same, but we can survive. And to some degree, we can heal. Open this book, and let the healing continue.

Shattered was a 2017 Best Book Awards Finalist.