Grief, Loss, and Bereavement Support Groups

Each of us mourns the death of a loved one differently. While some people attempt to cope with their grief by themselves and do not want or need outside assistance, many others seek and find comfort in sharing the pain, anger, depression and other emotions they feel following a loss. This article provides a list of grief and bereavement support groups and organizations that offer nationwide grief support and recovery services, information and other resources to help the bereaved.

The following groups and organizations offer nationwide grief, loss and bereavement support and recovery services, information and other resources. Because many of these groups specialize in the grief associated with a particular type of circumstance, this list is arranged alphabetically by the type of loss. (The "General Loss" category offers listings that you might find helpful regardless of the cause of death.)

Moreover, this list is not comprehensive. The groups and organizations shown below appear here because they offer assistance regardless of where you live. Therefore, you should also search for grief, loss and bereavement support and recovery groups in your community. These meetings are often held in churches, community centers, hospitals and healthcare clinics, funeral homes, school gymnasiums, and other gathering spaces. If you cannot locate information about a grief support and recovery group in your community online, then you should contact a local funeral home for suggestions.

Finally, every listing/URL below is accurate as of the date at the end of this list but, unfortunately, Internet links can change.

Addiction Loss
• GRASP (Grief Recovery After a Substance Passing), http://grasphelp.org

Aircraft/Aviation Loss
• ACCESS (AirCraft Casualty Emotional Support Services), http://www.accesshelp.org

Child/Grandchild Loss
• Bereaved Parents of the USA, http://www.bereavedparentsusa.org
• Compassionate Friends, The, http://www.compassionatefriends.org
• COPE (Connecting Our Paths Eternally) Foundation, The, http://www.copefoundation.org
• Grief Healing, http://www.griefhealingdiscussiongroups.com
• Grieving.com, http://forums.grieving.com
• MISS Foundation, The, http://www.missfoundation.org
• Webhealing.com, http://webhealing.com/forums

Firefighter Loss
• National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, http://www.firehero.org

General Loss
• AARP, http://www.aarp.org/relationships/grief-loss
• Aftertalk, http://www.aftertalk.com
• Dougy Center, The, http://www.dougy.org
• Dying, Funerals & Grief Forum, http://www.facebook.com/AboutDeath
• Grief Healing, http://www.griefhealing.com
• GriefNet.org, http://www.griefnet.org
• GriefShare, http://www.griefshare.org
• Grieving.com, http://forums.grieving.com
• Hello Grief, http://www.hellogrief.org
• Light Beyond, The, http://www.thelightbeyond.com
• National Alliance for Grieving Children, http://childrengrieve.org
• National Students of AMF (Actively Moving Forward; for college students), http://www.studentsofamf.org
• New York Life Foundation, The, http://www.newyorklife.com/achildingrief
• Open to Hope, http://www.opentohope.com
• Rainbows, http://www.rainbows.org

Law-enforcement Loss
• C.O.P.S. (Concerns Of Police Survivors), http://www.nationalcops.org

LGBT Loss
• Hospice Foundation of America, http://hospicefoundation.org
• National Resource Center on LGBT Aging, http://www.lgbtagingcenter.org
Note: Many LGBT bereavement support groups operate locally, and you should search for one in your area.

Military/Armed Services Loss
• Camp Hometown Heroes (for children/teens), http://www.hometownheroes.org
• T.A.P.S. (Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors), http://www.taps.org

Miscarriage/Pregnancy/SIDS/Stillbirth Loss
• Baby Center, http://community.babycenter.com/groups/a15155/miscarriage_stillbirth_infant_loss_support
• CJ Foundation for SIDS, http://www.cjsids.org
• First Candle, http://www.firstcandle.org
• Grief Healing, http://www.griefhealing.com
• Grieve Out Loud, http://grieveoutloud.org
• Grieving.com, http://forums.grieving.com
• Hand to Hold, http://handtohold.org
• Healing Hearts, http://www.babylosscomfort.com
• Hope After Loss, http://www.hopeafterloss.org
• Missing GRACE Foundation, http://www.missinggrace.org
• Naomi's Circle, http://www.naomiscircle.org/index.html
• Share Pregnancy and Infant Loss Support, http://www.nationalshare.org
• Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood Program, http://www.sudc.org
• Tears Foundation, The, http://www.thetearsfoundation.org

Murder Loss
• Parents of Murdered Children, http://www.pomc.com/index.html

Parent Loss
• Camp Erin (for children), http://www.moyerfoundation.org/programs/CampErin.aspx
• Grief Healing, http://www.griefhealingdiscussiongroups.com
• Grieving.com, http://forums.grieving.com
• Webhealing.com, http://webhealing.com/forums

Pet Loss
• APLB (Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement), http://aplb.org
• Grief Healing, http://www.griefhealingdiscussiongroups.com
• Grieving.com, http://forums.grieving.com
• Pet Loss Grief Support, http://www.petloss.com

Sibling Loss
• Bereaved Parents of the USA, http://www.bereavedparentsusa.org
• Compassionate Friends, The, http://www.compassionatefriends.org
• Grief Healing, http://www.griefhealingdiscussiongroups.com
• Grieving.com, http://forums.grieving.com
• Twinless Twins Support Group, http://www.twinlesstwins.org
• Webhealing.com, http://webhealing.com/forums

Spouse/Partner Loss
• Beginning Experience, http://www.beginningexperience.org
• Grief Healing, http://www.griefhealingdiscussiongroups.com
• Grieving.com, http://forums.grieving.com
• National Widower's Organization, http://www.nationalwidowers.org
• Parents Without Partners, http://www.parentswithoutpartners.org
• Single Fathers Due to Cancer, http://www.singlefathersduetocancer.org
• Webhealing.com, http://webhealing.com/forums

Suicide Loss
• American Association of Suicidology, http://www.suicidology.org
• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, http://www.afsp.org
• Grieving.com, http://forums.grieving.com
• HEARTBEAT, http://heartbeatsurvivorsaftersuicide.org/index.shtml
• S.A.V.E. (Suicide Awareness Voices of Education), http://www.save.org
• SiblingSurvivors.com, http://siblingsurvivors.com
• Survivors of Suicide, http://www.survivorsofsuicide.com
• Webhealing.com, http://webhealing.com/forums

09/17/2015: New groups added and all links verified.
09/23/2014: New groups added and all links verified.
01/31/2014: New groups added.
01/03/2014: New groups added and all links verified.
02/26/2013: Original list published.