{"id":133386,"date":"2026-03-09T10:13:41","date_gmt":"2026-03-09T10:13:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/133386\/"},"modified":"2026-03-09T10:13:41","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T10:13:41","slug":"pennsylvania-parents-call-for-overdose-grief-support-services","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/133386\/","title":{"rendered":"Pennsylvania parents call for overdose grief support services"},"content":{"rendered":"

Using opioid settlement funds to support families<\/p>\n

The support Ousterman found through Philly HEALs after losing her son was validating not only for her grief, but other complex emotions she felt as a parent who had watched a child battle a substance use disorder<\/a> for years, she said.<\/p>\n

It was a time filled with a relentless amount of fear, anguish and despair for her son.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you\u2019re living with an adult child in chaotic use, it\u2019s really no different than being shot at in a war. Your nervous system is totally dysregulated. You\u2019re living on edge constantly,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

But many of those feelings dissipated after his death, only to be replaced by other types of deep pain, and a small bit of relief, Ousterman said \u2014 the kind that perhaps only another parent who has also lost a child to substance use can fully understand.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is that relief. And it absolutely doesn\u2019t compare to the pain we feel, of course,\u201d she said. \u201cBut it\u2019s nice to be able to say that to someone, like, \u2018Yeah, I don\u2019t miss not sleeping because I\u2019m waiting for the phone to ring,\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Ousterman coordinates some virtual peer grief support groups<\/a> through her nonprofit, the Vilomah Foundation, with the help of a mini grant from Bucks County and local opioid settlement funds.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not enough to serve everyone in the county who needs these services, she said. Bucks County had previously proposed<\/a> establishing a larger network of grief support groups with up to $150,000 of opioid settlement money, but the project didn\u2019t move forward, a county spokesperson told WHYY News. A smaller amount of money has been allocated toward grief support services in the community.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why Ousterman and others said they are urging state leaders to create a statewide program not only to coordinate grief support services, but to also provide respite care opportunities for grieving loved ones. They also want financial assistance for people facing significant funeral costs or those who are now raising children and grandchildren left behind by the death of a parent.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what we hope to do in Pennsylvania, is be connected to medical examiner\u2019s offices, funeral homes, so we can reach people right when it happens,\u201d Ousterman said. \u201cIf people don\u2019t have that support, you can\u2019t authentically grieve.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Using opioid settlement funds to support families The support Ousterman found through Philly HEALs after losing her son…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":133387,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[36882,30344,69,71,70],"class_list":["post-133386","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-philadelphia","tag-grief","tag-opioid-addiction","tag-philadelphia","tag-philadelphia-headlines","tag-philadelphia-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133386","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=133386"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133386\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/133387"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=133386"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=133386"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=133386"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}