Jan 17, 2009 7:55 am US/Eastern
A Place For Children To Mend A Grieving Heart
WEST PALM BEACH (CBS4) ―
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Hearts and Hope is a not-for-profit group devoted to providing children, ages three to seventeen, and their families who have experienced the death of a loved one.
CBS
Patrice Austin works to help grieving children overcome their sorrow when a family member is diagnosed with cancer.
She is founder and executive director of "Hearts and Hope" located in West Palm Beach.
"If mommy has cancer, mommy changes," Austin explained. "She changes by nature of how she feels, maybe how she looks or things she's able to do."
There are a number of signs that might indicate a child is having trouble.
"Pretty much what you would watch for would be symptoms that maybe a child isn't eating," explained Austin, "or, maybe a child isn't sleeping regularly; behavioral changes, or maybe there's acting out, or there could be withdrawal."
Attorney Joe Fields knows what can happen when a loved one suddenly dies.
"Back when it happened to me in the 60's, it was sort of considered not appropriate to talk about,so it was internalized," Fields recalled.
But over the years, Americans have become more open to talking about cancer and the toll it takes on loved ones.
"We went to the organization, and it was refreshing how nice it was to go into a home where everyone in the house is focused on helping children," Fields explained. "One of my kids actually developed a line of grieving cards for children, as part of his comment."
"Hearts and Hope" says just being aware of the potential for delayed stress may help families deal with the repercussions of having an ill parent.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Burned Teen's Family Staying Positive
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