Community Counselling Cooperative

BLOOMING BYKER!

Do you live in Byker and have a small patio or balcony that needs a bit of colour!?

Why not try the free Balcony Basics gardening session with The National Trust tomorrow at Byker Sands Family Hub?

Read more about the session below....AND other sessions coming up, including Wlid about Wildlife at The Lighthouse Project and Food Growing at Foundation Futures!

🧡 No one should have to sit alone.

We're delighted to be co-hosting our first Empty Chairs Meet Up at Linskill Café, North Shields.

Empty Chairs is a community-led initiative that helps tackle loneliness by creating relaxed, low-pressure spaces where people can connect over a cuppa and conversation. There is no agenda, no need to book, and no expectation to stay for any set amount of time – simply come along and join us.

📅 Friday 26th June
🕧 12.30pm – 3.30pm
📍 Linskill Café, Linskill Centre, North Shields

When you arrive, look out for Darren, our friendly host, who will be wearing an orange hoodie.
Whether you'd like a chat, some company over a cuppa, or simply to meet new people in a welcoming environment, you'll be very welcome.
Come along, pull up a chair, and see where the conversation takes you. 🧡

If you’ve ever felt like grief suddenly spikes out of nowhere, you’re not imagining it.

That surge has a name: a STUG.
Sudden.
Temporary.
Upsurge (of)
Grief.

Coined by researcher Therese Rando, STUGs help explain why grief can feel manageable one moment and overwhelming the next. They’re often activated by dates, memories, milestones, or seemingly small reminders. And while they can be intense, they are also temporary.

Knowing this can help remind us that these moments aren’t setbacks; they’re a normal part of how grief shows up.

Grief isn’t linear. And sometimes, it surges.

Get involved in Pride in Place 🫶

Four neighbourhoods in Newcastle - Elswick South, Walker North, Fawdon South, and Throckley, Newburn and Walbottle - will each receive up to £20 million over the next 10 years through the Pride in Place Programme.

Local Neighbourhood Boards, made up of residents and partner organisations, will help decide how this funding is used, making sure it reflects local priorities and supports those who need it most.

We’re looking for people who care about their area and want to have a say in how this funding is spent to join these Boards.

Come along to an information session to find out more:

📍 Thursday 14 May, 10.00am to Midday - West End Women and Girls, Elswick
📍 Tuesday 19 May, Midday to 2:00pm – Wor Hoose, Walker
📍 Thursday 21 May 5:30pm to 7:30pm, Tyne Amateur Rowing Club, Newburn
📍 Tuesday 2 June, 5:00pm to 7:00pm – Eagles Vertu Arena, Elswick
📍 Wednesday 3 June, 5:00pm to 7:00pm – Walker Park Café Building, Walker
📍Thursday 11 June 10:00am to Midday, Throckley Community Hall

See the link in the comments for more details. Further dates to be announced soon 👇

.
Here's your assignment:

1. Send this video to three people.
2. Watch it (4 mins)
3. Discuss the video with each other.
4. What new insights did you discover about dying and about each other? Tell us here.

It's time to talk about dying.

Video is at: https://bit.ly/TheosDFB

Why not sign up for our next Bereavement course? Starts Tuesday 12 May. The course lasts 5 weeks and is an opportunity to share experiences in a supportive environment.

This Thursday in Heaton https://www.instagram.com/p/DX9v9aFjAjs/?igsh=MThmNjNkd2NqaWg4bg==

Dying Matters For our event on Thursday, 7th May 5:30pm-7pm, we will be rasing money for Hospice UK. We'll have cake, hot drinks and a collection of books about loss and grief. This is a little preview of some of the books we will have available that evening. No need to book, feel free to pop by and have a chat with us 💚 #newcastle #books #grief #dyingmatters

Love this

After Dean's best friend Rob died, he left an empty space behind. Now Dean offers empty chairs for strangers to sit and chat...

The concept is simple. Dean Perryman goes to a pub wearing a bright orange hoodie, and sits with the empty chairs around him. The idea came to him as he struggled with grief and guilt following Rob's death.

"I had no idea how sad Rob was. So I was just overwhelmed by all of that. And I felt compelled to do something," he says.

He decided he wanted to help strangers who might be struggling with their own feelings of distress and loneliness.

"The thing that I couldn't wrap my head around was this idea of the empty chair where Rob would have always sat," he says. Casting around for what to do, he had a lightbulb moment.

"I was like, well. I'm not good at many things, but I'm OK at chatting and I'm good at drinking beer. So let's go to the pub and let's just see if there's anyone there that wants to chat."

One man he spoke to early on says the comfortable environment helped him open up to the point where he was ready to get professional help.

And Dean says what he does has helped him process his own loss too.

"It kind of forced me to talk, and it also kind of just exposed me to other people, I mean, how helpful people are," he says.

Now Dean's campaign, which he called Empty Chairs and started in the UK, has gone global, with groups in Germany, Belgium, Canada and the US.

Dean says the success hasn't sunk in - but he's inspired by everyone who's hosted events as he knows from experience it isn't an easy thing to do.

"It takes courage to put on the orange hoodie and it takes courage to go and sit with a stranger," he says. "But every single time I've left empty chairs, I've felt so much better for going."

Above all, it's brought home to him just how helpful people can be.

"If you give them an opportunity, strangers tend to be quite incredible."

🎧 https://bbc.in/4exWael

My therapist told me that anxiety is a bully and, like all bullies, it needs to be put in its place. To my relief, she knew exactly how to do it