Stepparenting the Grieving Child: Cultivating Past and Present Connections with Children Who Have Lost a Parent

On a daily basis, I bought into a common myth ... that by giving our grieving stepfamily a little time we would start to gel... I waited years for this miraculous transformation and then realized it was me who had to change.

In Stepparenting the Grieving Child, Diane Ingram Fromme shares the assumptions and presumptions that commonly occur in stepfamilies. Diane faced the challenges any new stepparent to grieving children experiences, including helplessness to know how to build relationships, awkwardness around memorializing the lost parent, and insecurity-wanting to be more comfortable in her own home and skin. Diane explains why merely voicing her concerns as a stepmom-though vital-was not enough to move forward with her stepfamily. Instead, she advocates a process to learn and grow with one's grieving family.

Diane's straightforward approach will help you:

- Gain a more relaxed mindset toward stepparenting through grief

- Validate when to let the natural parent take the lead

- Consider how to be part of the team who helps one's stepchildren grieve and grow

With personal examples, insights from other stepfamilies, and knowledge gained through experience and research, Stepparenting the Grieving Child provides information, hope, and inspiration to anyone who supports grieving children.