Awakening to Eternal Love, Comfort and Connection
My Research
I recently completed a six-week, arts-based dreamwork focus group where I supported others in dreaming of their departed loved ones, an unbidden phenomenon that has been extensively documented since the beginning of time.
The group had seven participants who engaged in my proprietary process which combines art therapy, ritual, meditation and dreamwork.
Six of seven dreamt of their loved ones one or more times, with the seventh reporting that, “As the result of this work, I experienced a profound healing with my brother who I hadn’t spoken with in years. I believe it’s because our mother stepped in from the spirit world to heal this wound.”
The group had seven participants who engaged in my proprietary process which combines art therapy, ritual, meditation and dreamwork.
Six of seven dreamt of their loved ones one or more times, with the seventh reporting that, “As the result of this work, I experienced a profound healing with my brother who I hadn’t spoken with in years. I believe it’s because our mother stepped in from the spirit world to heal this wound.”
Why arts-based?
Artists have long used art-making as a way to commune with spirit and connect with divine energy. Nora Swan-Foster, a Jungian psychoanalyst and art therapist, shares that Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung used art and dream imagery to explore spirituality as a path to achieving wholeness.
Awakening to Eternal Love, Comfort and Connection combines this idea with the creation of Loving Memory Boxes™. These sacred containers both honor our loved ones and act as a symbolic bridge to them in the Spirit World.
As a fine artist, my art-making process is primary in connecting with spirit. Visit www.elizabethbryanjacobs.com to view the results of this journey.
Exterior, Loving Memory Box™
Why arts-based?
Artists have long used art-making as a way to commune with spirit and connect with divine energy. Nora Swan-Foster, a Jungian psychoanalyst and art therapist, shares that Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung used art and dream imagery to explore spirituality as a path to achieving wholeness.
Awakening to Eternal Love, Comfort and Connection combines this idea with the creation of Loving Memory Boxes™. These sacred containers both honor our loved ones and act as a symbolic bridge to them in the Spirit World.
As a fine artist, my art-making process is primary in connecting with spirit. Visit www.elizabethbryanjacobs.com to view the results of this journey.
Exterior, Loving Memory Box™
Implications for Grief Work
As an art therapist with a focus in hospice and bereavement, I am most moved to also share the following:
All participants in my focus group also reported a post-program decrease in grief intensity that averaged over 50% on a Likert scale.
All participants also plan to continue the practices in an ongoing way. They also report feeling much more spiritually connected overall, with each of the practices greatly contributing to their well-being.
Healing What Wasn’t Healed: The Heartbeat of this Work
Often times, when a loved one leaves, we are filled with guilt and regret: ”I should have done this, I should have said that…” the list goes on. These extremely difficult emotions make an already unbearable experience even more unbearable.
Awakening to Eternal Love gives us the chance to say what we need to say and heal what wasn’t healed. More importantly, it opens a sacred window that invites us to listen for our loved ones to respond.
In that space, we can hear and feel their loving presence once again, embarking on the Journey from Loss to Love.
Exterior, Loving Memory Box™
Interior, Loving Memory Box™
