The Group Seven Widowed Fathers Reimagine Life

On a mid-October evening, a group of fathers gathered around a conference table and met each other for the first time. None of the men had ever thought of himself a "support group kind of guy" and each felt entirely out of place. In fact, nothing about their lives felt normal anymore.

The Group: Seven Widowed Fathers Reimagine Life chronicles the challenges and triumphs of seven men whose wives died from cancer and were left to raise their young children entirely on their own. Brought together by tragedy, the fathers - Neill, Dan, Bruce, Karl, Joe, Steve, and Russ - forged an uncommon bond. Over time, group meetings evolved into a forum for reinvention and transformed the men in unexpected ways. Through the fathers' poignant interactions, The Group illustrates that while some wounds never fully heal, each of us has the potential to construct a new and meaningful future.

Rosenstein and Yopp, co-leaders of the support group, weave together the fathers' stories with contemporary research on grief and adaptation. The Group traces a compelling journey of healing and personal discovery that no book has ever captured before. The men's touching efforts to care for their families, grieve for their wives, and reimagine their futures will inspire anyone who has suffered a major loss.

Donald L. Rosenstein, M.D. is a psychiatrist and Professor in the Departments of Medicine and Psychiatry at UNC where he directs the Comprehensive Cancer Support Program. Dr. Rosenstein was formerly at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland, where he held several leadership positions including National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Clinical Director, Chief of the NIH Psychiatry Consultation-Liaison Service and Chair of both the Clinical Center Ethics Committee and the NIMH Institutional Review Board. He is a senior clinician and active researcher with expertise in the psychiatric care of patients with cancer and other medical illnesses. Dr. Rosenstein is Past-President of the Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine.

Justin M. Yopp, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at UNC. Through his clinical work in the Comprehensive Cancer Support Program, he provides diagnostic and therapeutic services to children and adults with cancer. Dr. Yopp specializes in caring for terminally ill patients and their families. He previously served as the coordinator of the inpatient psychological consultation-liaison service at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee.

Together, the authors are the creators of the Single Fathers Due to Cancer Program.

Introduction
Part I Unimaginable Loss
Chapter 1 The First Meeting
Chapter 2 Beyond "Death and Dying"
Chapter 3 Going it Alone
Chapter 4 The Wrong Parent Died
Chapter 5 "Of course I'm depressed, but do I have depression?"
Chapter 6 Band of Brothers

Part II Adaptation
Chapter 7 Resilience
Chapter 8 Finding Meaning
Chapter 9 Dating, v 2.0
Chapter 10 "Better, perhaps, in some ways.
Chapter 11 Giving Back

Part III Reimagined Futures
Chapter 12 The "Good Enough Father"
Chapter 13 Untapped Wisdom
Chapter 14 The Fathers' Narratives
Chapter 15 Reunion