We are doing some work to better understand and support people who experience some kind of loss in their lives.
This could be the loss of someone or something close to you such as a partner, relative or friend or your sight, hearing, health or independence.
We are offering a ‘thank you’ £15 voucher for people who help us with this work in recognition of your time and experience. There are different ways you could help, for example, by talking to us over the telephone, taking part in an online group discussion or by having a face-to-face meeting, whatever suits you best.
Below is a message from Ann Macfarlane OBE, KCIL’s Patron on the subject of loss.
If you feel you can help us with this work, please get in touch with me Phil Levick on 020 8546 9603 or email: [email protected]
If you don’t feel able to help us at this time but would like to talk to someone, please contact us on 020 8546 9603 or [email protected]
Thank you very much
Message from Ann Macfarlane, KCIL Patron –
“Loss comes to each of us in different ways and at different times. Loss can spread over many years or it may be sudden and unexpected. Although I have experienced many deaths, the most painful and the one that has caused the biggest loss has been that of ‘self.’
For many years I struggled with the loss of who I was and this never left me. Other people never realised my unhappiness and my loss of identity. In experiencing the physical death of others, family, close friends and the death of people I did not know, each of these affected my wellbeing.
It was when I was referred to a Counsellor and begun to work on issues that affected my life in many ways, I slowly gained the sense of who I really was and truly began to embrace life. This took over twenty years to reach a place of well-being. I was freed from my imprisonment which led to being able to listen and support other people.
Many qualified professionals cannot understand disability issues and so did not relate to my childhood years of being in multiple hospitals where abuse was rife. Since loss became manageable, I have been able to engage with loss in its different forms with the addition of physical death and the ability to help family members and the wider population.
Of course, other significant losses are those of moving house, moving into a residential or nursing setting, maybe leaving a beloved pet, or the death of a pet, loss of privacy when one can no longer manage your health, reading ability or finances, difficult loss in relationships, even with loss of friends when one becomes disabled.
There are many losses we all experience in a lifetime. I’ve opened up a little on my journey in order that you may know that whatever feelings and thoughts, behaviours and other issues of loss that you are experiencing, KCIL is inviting you to answer some anonymous questions that can find the gaps in services that many of us would like filled. You don’t have to do a survey, we can provide a listener, or a phone call, or you could choose to join a small and confidential group setting where you will be supported with follow up where appropriate.
Please help KCIL with this Project so that you might find support and, it may be that in so doing, be a support to others in their grief and loss”.
Ann kindly recorded the above text for us. Here it is below.
[Visual description of the video – this is a collection of stock video footage over which Ann is talking. It opens with film from a cemetery, then shows a collection of people, some in wheelchairs, some in therapeutic situations.]
