Helping Kids Transition to Adulthood

3 Things You Need To Know About Processing Grief

17 October 2017

William Palmer

Losing a loved one is devastating. It can affect every moment of your life. Grief is all encompassing and can change the way food tastes, how you interact with others, and even you ability to do daily activities. It is important that you get the help that you need if you are going through a loss. Here are some things that you should know about dealing with grief.

1. Allow Yourself To Feel All The Emotions

One of the first mistakes that people make when they are dealing with something traumatic or with the loss of a loved one is that they don't fully process the emotions that they are feeling. Instead, they bottle them up and either pretend that they are fine, or else they just ignore the feelings that they have because they are scared of what they do will when they actually allow themselves to feel.

The best thing that you can do is process the emotions as they come. For instance, you might be in the grocery store, and something you see there reminds you of the person, and in that moment you are overcome with sadness. It is completely okay to go and sit in your car and cry as you mourn the loss, yet again, of your loved one. This kind of grieving is incredibly important to getting through the emotions so that they don't overtake you.

2. Get Support From Others

Additionally, it is important to have people that you can talk to about the grief. There are two different kinds of situations, first you can talk to people who are going through the same experiences who did not know your loved one. These are people who at the beginning are strangers, but who have lost someone. The group of you talk together in the presence of a moderator who helps to keep the discussion helpful.

Additionally, you can talk to people who are grieving the loss of the same person. Family members, close friends and people who also knew and loved the person can be helpful, since they understand and are dealing with the same thing. You just want to make sure that the discussions are constructive.

3.  Give Yourself Time

Lastly, there is no timeline to grief. You can take a much time as you need to heal. You might even be surprised that years after the incident, and you feel fine, to have something happen that brings back the feelings. When those intense feelings come, process them, don't be upset that you thought you were done with grieving. You are never done with grief, you just learn to manage. 

Contact a company that offers grief support to learn more.

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