Threads of Hope Training
Threads of Hope: Weaving Support for Grief After Substance Use-Related Death
One in twelve will experience the death of a parent or sibling by the time they are 18 years of age. Of those, one in five children is bereaved due to a substance use-related death (CBEM, 2023). When a child loses someone to substance use, their grief journey is uniquely challenging. While we know grief doesn't follow a simple timeline, these losses often carry added layers of stigma, shame, and silence. Many children and families struggle to find support, lacking the words to express their experience or access to understanding communities.
To truly help these families, we must bridge the gaps between substance use treatment, mental health care, and grief support. This means recognizing how stigma creates barriers to healing, understanding the complex dynamics of substance-use-related loss, and learning how to create safe spaces where children can process their grief honestly.
This training equips professionals and natural helpers with practical frameworks and strategies to better serve grieving children and families affected by substance use deaths. Through a collaborative, family-centered approach, we'll explore how to provide the comprehensive support these families desperately need.
The Threads of Hope training has 9 CEU's approved by the Illinois Certification Board, Inc. and will be offered for free to those who complete the two-day training.
Click on the region/date below you wish to register for.
Funding for this program is provided in whole or in part through the Substance Use Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery Block Grant through the American Rescue Plan Act.