Inspired by Resilience: Developing AHELP’s Coaching Model for Animal Hospice

Inspired by Resilience:
Developing AHELP’s Coaching Model for Animal Hospice
By Michelle Nichols, AHELP Founder

Introduction:

Grieving the decline and loss of a beloved pet is a profoundly emotional experience. As an animal hospice advocate, I recognized the need to adapt pet loss grief support principles for pet parents navigating the complexities of animal hospice caregiving. Traditional grief support often didn’t address the unique challenges of this journey, from making difficult decisions to balancing love and loss during a pet’s final days. This realization inspired me to reimagine how we could better support pet parents, leading to the adaptation of a resilience-focused grief framework specifically for pet families.

The Inspiration:

My journey into animal hospice began with our family’s beloved Boxer, Brodie. When Brodie passed away after years of pet palliative care, I experienced a deeply compassionate way of navigating end-of-life care for a pet. This experience enlightened me and showed me a new way to approach the death of a beloved animal family member.

With my human hospice nurse mother’s support and information, my family—including my young daughter—felt at peace after the experience. We soon healed readily, recognizing that we had followed our Path of Least Regrets. We found meaning in Brodie’s life and his subsequent death, and we learned lessons we carried into our future of living with and loving animals. These lessons became the foundation of my passion to help other pet families experience the same peace, connection, and healing we did.

What Are Resilient Grieving Principles?

Dr. Lucy Hone, a resilience expert trained in Positive Psychology, introduced her groundbreaking approach to grief in her book, Resilient Grieving: Finding Strength and Embracing Life After a Loss That Changes Everything. Her work focuses on helping grievers respond to and adapt after the loss of a loved one, emphasizing resilience and the ability to find meaning even during profoundly difficult times.

The core principles of Resilient Grieving include:

1. Recognizing Strengths: Understanding that individuals already possess the inner tools needed to cope with loss, rather than seeing themselves as broken or fragile.
2. Practical Tools for Recovery: Implementing actionable strategies to manage the emotional and practical challenges of grief, such as decision-making stress and caregiver fatigue.
3. Creating Meaning: Focusing on finding purpose in the experience of loss, which can provide comfort and perspective during difficult times.

Why our Animal Hospice Coaching Includes Resilient Grieving Principles:

Inspired by Dr. Hone’s research, I adapted resilience principles to address the unique experiences of pet parents facing the complexities of animal hospice and the subsequent loss of a beloved pet. The adaptation focuses on:

• Empowering Pet Caregivers: Helping pet parents make thoughtful decisions and embrace their capacity for resilience during this challenging time.
• Addressing Complexity: Recognizing the unique challenges of caring for an animal, including pet caregiver fatigue, tough decision-making, and balancing love and loss.
• Creating Meaning: Encouraging pet families to find meaning in the caregiving process and the connection shared with their pets.
• A Path of Least Regrets: Making thoughtful, compassionate choices that honor their pet’s dignity and foster peace in their hearts.

These principles form a foundational part of my pet hospice coaching program, ensuring that pet parents receive practical and compassionate support. You can learn more about this approach on the Why Pet Hospice Coaching? webpage.

Moving Forward:

With resilience-focused support, pet parents can move through the toughest moments of caregiving with confidence and grace, embracing the beauty and connection that comes with animal hospice and palliative care—even during bittersweet times. I’ve incorporated Resilient Grieving Principles into the Partners to the Bridge Animal Hospice Coaching, offering personalized guidance and support to pet families. To learn more about how these principles can help you and your beloved pet, visit our Partners to the Bridge coaching page.

Photo from left to right: Dr. Jennifer Christey DVM, Michelle Nichols, pet parent Carson, and senior dog Lucky in an AHELP Comprehensive Care Home Visit

If you’re ready to connect and explore how Partners to the Bridge Animal Hospice Coaching can support you, I invite you to schedule a Quick Connect Call. This is an opportunity for us to meet, discuss your needs, and learn how this pet hospice coaching program can make a difference for you and your pet.

Click here to schedule your Quick Connect Call today!

( Blog post banner photo: Amy with Scotty at their home listening to Michelle Nichols with AHELP Project during a consultation. Copyright © AHELP Project. All rights reserved. )

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