Yvonne Ortega. Moving from Broken to Beautiful Through Grief. EA Books Publishing, 2017. See here or here to purchase the book.
According to the “About the Author” page of the book, “Yvonne Ortega is a licensed professional counselor, a licensed substance abuse treatment practitioner, and a clinically certified domestic violence counselor.”
In this book, Ortega talks about ways to cope with grief after the loss of a loved one. She tells a lot of people’s stories, but she also tells her own, as she has coped with the loss of her mother and her only son. The book covers a lot of territory: dealing with people’s inappropriate comments, ways to help someone who is grieving, coping with the holidays, fading faith, regret, the dangers of self-medication, and more.
There are similarities between this book and another book of hers that I read, Moving from Broken to Beautiful Through Forgiveness. Both open the chapters with a thought-provoking quote. Both share poignant and relevant Scriptures. Both display an understanding, empathetic tone, which appreciates where people are. And both discuss the importance of music in personal healing. In Moving from Broken to Beautiful Through Grief, Ortega shares songs, both contemporary and traditional, that can help people as they journey through grief. She also highlights the importance of journaling as a way to express one’s feelings.
Moving from Broken to Beautiful Through Grief strikes me as more detailed than the book on forgiveness. The book on grief seems to share more of Ortega’s feelings and has more anecdotes.
One critique that I have: Ortega tells the story about a man who did not want to join a grief support group because he was introverted. I think that she should have discussed more how people who are uncomfortable with groups can cope with their grief. She did say that he saw a grief counselor, and maybe that is a solution: talk with someone one-on-one. But what if he is still uncomfortable expressing his feelings?
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through Bookcrash. My review is honest.
According to the “About the Author” page of the book, “Yvonne Ortega is a licensed professional counselor, a licensed substance abuse treatment practitioner, and a clinically certified domestic violence counselor.”
In this book, Ortega talks about ways to cope with grief after the loss of a loved one. She tells a lot of people’s stories, but she also tells her own, as she has coped with the loss of her mother and her only son. The book covers a lot of territory: dealing with people’s inappropriate comments, ways to help someone who is grieving, coping with the holidays, fading faith, regret, the dangers of self-medication, and more.
There are similarities between this book and another book of hers that I read, Moving from Broken to Beautiful Through Forgiveness. Both open the chapters with a thought-provoking quote. Both share poignant and relevant Scriptures. Both display an understanding, empathetic tone, which appreciates where people are. And both discuss the importance of music in personal healing. In Moving from Broken to Beautiful Through Grief, Ortega shares songs, both contemporary and traditional, that can help people as they journey through grief. She also highlights the importance of journaling as a way to express one’s feelings.
Moving from Broken to Beautiful Through Grief strikes me as more detailed than the book on forgiveness. The book on grief seems to share more of Ortega’s feelings and has more anecdotes.
One critique that I have: Ortega tells the story about a man who did not want to join a grief support group because he was introverted. I think that she should have discussed more how people who are uncomfortable with groups can cope with their grief. She did say that he saw a grief counselor, and maybe that is a solution: talk with someone one-on-one. But what if he is still uncomfortable expressing his feelings?
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through Bookcrash. My review is honest.