Welcome to Merrywidow
My name is Kate Boydell, and I founded merrywidow.me.uk in October 2002. The site was originally designed as a standalone survival guide for young widows, but since then has developed into a hugely popular online resource for anyone who has lost a partner.
Merrywidow does not exclude anybody, it is open to all, and the information contained here is essential reading for widows and widowers of all ages, as well as friends and family who would like to know how best to help.
If you need a sympathetic ear, or a way to let off steam, then please visit the Message Board; if you need light relief, then read the Diary; and if you need a concise, practical manual on how to cope with your loss, then read the Guide.
I hope you find what you're looking for, and thank you for visiting.
Latest News
WAY UP - Way-Up is a support forum set up specifically for widows and widowers over the age of 50.
For more information visit:
http://groups.google.co.uk/group/way-up
Memorial Website
A new website has recently been launched which helps people to set up online memorials.
MuchLoved is an organisation established to assist people who have suffered bereavement, particularly the death of a family member or friend.
They provide and maintain individual, unique and sensitive website tributes in order to enable you to commemorate, celebrate or simply remember a person you loved and still love.
They also maintain a Community to provide you with information on sources of bereavement advice and counselling, as well as mutual support.
For more information please click on the button below.
Government policy on lone parents and benefits.
The governement announced plans to target lone parents in order to get more people off benefits and into jobs. Single parents can currently receive Income Support without having to seek work until their youngest child is 16.
But Work Secretary John Hutton told BBC Radio 4 he thought it not "unreasonable" to cut that age to 12.
Chris Pond, chief executive of the charity One Parent Families, said 66% of lone parents with a youngest child aged between 11 and 16 were already in work.
As the government's target was 70%, he said, "this isn't going to take you very far".
A quarter of the parents that would be affected were caring for a disabled child, Mr Pond added.
Highly Commended Award - Posted on 5/09/06
I am delighted to announce that 'Death and How to Survive it' has been given a Highly Commended Award by the British Medical Association in their 2006 Book Awards. This was a complete shock to me, as it is not exactly a weighty medical tome, and contains a few words that you won't find in a medical dictionary.
I am grateful to the BMA for honouring me in such a way, and for giving the book a chance to be read by the very people who can make a real difference. I hope that one day, greater understanding and insight will help reduce the tendency to prescribe tranquillizers and anti-depressants to relieve the symptoms of grief, and that the medical profession will recognise that most people are already equipped with everything they need to survive a traumatic loss
MW Discussion Board
Five latest topics rasied from the discussion board
Click the topics to read more or view the discussion board and start your own topic.
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