I do not claim to be a grief expert. I do know firsthand what it is like to experience loss and have no clear place to turn other than the internet, outdated resource lists, and hours of searching for something that might help.
I became a widow at a young age. Years later, my son was murdered.
After his death, I went looking for grief support. The only group I could find met in a nursing home. Everyone there had experienced loss, but most were grieving something very different from what I was.
My surviving children were grieving the loss of their dad and, later, their brother. I was grieving the loss of my husband and then my son. We loved the same people, but we needed different kinds of support. That was when I realized grief is not one journey. It is thousands of different journeys.
After my son was murdered, I learned that homicide grief often means navigating far more than the loss itself. Families can suddenly find themselves facing law enforcement, court proceedings, victim services, media attention, unanswered questions, and a justice system they were never prepared to enter. That experience led me to create Beyond the Verdict, a specialized Grief Navigation pathway for families living through homicide and violent loss.
Grief is also not limited to the death of a person. We grieve relationships, health, identity, careers, dreams, and the life we thought we would be living. Every loss has its own shape, and every person deserves support that recognizes what they are carrying.
That is why I created Grief Navigation.
My goal is simple. If this platform makes it easier for even one person to come to one place, find a resource that fits, and feel a little less alone while searching for help, then Grief Navigation has done exactly what I hoped it would do.
You do not have to walk this path alone.
✦ Teri L. Busse
Founder, Grief Navigation