About The Authors - Russell Friedman & John James

If you’re like most people, you associate the word grief exclusively with death.

But in reality, a romantic breakup is the “death of a relationship.” It ends the hopes, dreams, and expectations that we have about the future. The fact remains that we feel grief following the change or end of any familiar pattern of behavior.

Moving On is not the authors’ first book. The Grief Recovery Handbook, first focused primarily on the grief caused by death. Now in it’s three editions and translated into multiple languages, it has stood the test of time and is considered the “standard” in helping people deal with the grief caused by losses of all kinds around the world.

Next, John and Russell took direct aim at the parents, grandparents, and other guardians who were desperate to learn better ways to guide their children in dealing with the losses that affect their young lives. When Children Grieve, published in 2001, addressed the entire gamut of losses that are most likely to impact children. It too, has become the benchmark for programs that give people concrete actions to help the children in their care.

John and Russell then became aware of the need to create a specific book, dedicated exclusively to the endings of romantic relationships. Moving On is not an overnight wonder. It is the long-term by-product of the authors’ combined 45 years of helping thousands of people complete the emotional damage of their romantic past.

What People are Saying About Moving On

Just Unbelievably Good - I do not care who you are, everyone enters a relationship with baggage. Some people's baggage may be from Louis Vuitton and others may be from K-Mart, but at the end of the day it drags us down and has the potential of sabotaging a really great relationship. The authors do a great job of explaining why we carry the baggage we do and what we can do to shed it. If you are in a good relationship that is breaking down because of what has happened in your past or if you have had a series of failed relationships and want to end the pattern, this book will help you make the changes you need to really find the love you deserve. -Glen (Glen Allen, VA)

Excellent! -I was lucky enough to be given a preview copy of this book and began taking the actions inside. It has helped me so much to get complete with my past relationships so I can be more present for a new one. I highly recommend it for anyone hoping to find happiness in a relationship. The actions in the book have helped me get out of self-analyzing isolation and back into living. -Rita (CA)

Ignore the Pink Cover. It's Not as Girlie as It Looks - Think about it. It's really not that hard. Would you rather live the rest of your life with a smile on your face and a spring in your step or do you want to continue suffering silently because you're a guy and that's what guys do?
Seriously. Do you want to stumble through life with that unhealed hole in your chest?
If the smile and the spring sound good, let Friedman and James teach you how to once and for all put that old relationship behind you. It's a process. They'll walk you through it. No meetings to attend. No awkward moments. No one will ever know. -R. Williams (Austin, Texas)

First-Aid for the Heart- If you are in a stormy relationship and ready to jump overboard from the "Love Boat"... BUY THIS BOOK! This book is the culmination of over 20 years of real world experience working with people in emotional turmoil. The authors run the "Grief Recovery Institute" in California and have helped thousands of people, just like you and me, who have had their hearts broken. If you follow the deep caring wisdom in "Moving On" you will discover that hearts aren't made to be broken ... hearts are made for love. -Tom T. Rumble (TEXAS)

My Relationship WAS On Thin Ice! -I've known for some time that I've been carrying a lot of baggage with me, and that it caused me to sabotage several relationships. But that awareness never helped me change. I had tried every thing I heard of and bought every book out there, but all they did was make me more aware of how messed up I was and didn't give me any real way to change. My current girlfriend had already let me know that our relationship was on thin ice. Just as the end was in sight, a friend of mine who knows the guys who wrote this book, got me a PDF copy of it. Now I don't want to come off all new-agey or anything, but as a result of doing the actions in this book, I have truly begun to change. I really have hope that this relationship can be the one that makes it. –Kurt NY

It’s one thing to tell you what we’ve done to help others, but it’s another to explain to you that in order to help others we first had to help ourselves. Not only is that true for us but we believe it should be the cornerstone for all who would guide others.

We are both in very happy, long-term relationships, one of twenty five years, the other eighteen, but that’s only part of what qualifies us to write this book. Both of us also had failed relationships, which is just another piece of what qualifies us to write this book. What uniquely qualifies us is that we have taken the actions outlined in this book to complete the prior romantic relationships that affected our lives. It is the emotional completion that resulted from those actions that allowed us each to find and sustain our long-term relationships. In turn, that’s what qualifies and encourages us to help others.

We are very busy delivering seminars and trainings and working on our next two books – one on Pet Loss and the other on how to deal with our Aging Parents. But, we encourage you to contact us, using the information on this website or at the end of Moving On. We will do our best to respond to your notes and to give some guidance as you work your way through the actions in the book.

Having been there and done that we know that it requires courage and willingness to move forward and do new and different things to get better results. Metaphorically at least, we’ll be with you every step of the way.