You may not be grieving for your loved one alone. You may have a small child or children who are grieving, and along with your own grief, you need to be supportive and understanding of their reactions to the death of their special someone. This post is for parents of children who are grieving. »
You may be reading this series wondering how to help someone close to you, grieve the loss of their loved one. Some people have firm beliefs about the grieving process and what should and should not be done when assisting others. Generally speaking, there are some myths about grieving which should be considered when assisting the bereaved. »
So far (read previous posts here) we have identified some specific reactions to your loss, secondary and prior losses and looked at various feelings which are individual to you at this time. Don’t expect these feelings to disappear overnight. Below are some helpful tips that you might like to consider: »
Whether the loss of your loved one was sudden or expected, the grief associated with the loss hurts. Sometimes we put ourselves through unnecessary pain by wishing for things like a better relationship or more time with the deceased, or the opportunity to say things we didn’t say when we were with the person. »
Some of us may feel we have encountered more than our fair share of losses in life. The emotion of grief is not restricted to the reaction to the death of a relative or close friend. It can be experienced in many situations including divorce, miscarriage, severe injury, loss of a job or pet, or even when our youngest child leaves home. These experiences can compound our grieving and it is importan... »
Losing a loved one can bring about many unexpected changes. When the deceased is someone extremely close like a partner or family member, the loss brings with it other or secondary losses which impact on the lives of the surviving family members. The personal experience of loss should be looked at individually, as no two people will be impacted in the same way. The following list looks at secondar... »
As complicated as it sounds, grief is a process which can be worked through. A famous psychiatrist, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross is recognised as one of the foremost authorities in the field of death and dying. Her first book, On Death and Dying is required reading in many universities in the schools of medicine and social sciences. »
The impact of grief can cause tremendous chaos to all aspects of our life. We all respond differently to grief but the most important thing to remember is that most reactions are normal. Sometimes we find these responses overwhelming but knowing they are normal helps us to come to terms with the changes. »
Losing someone you love can be like losing one half of yourself. The pain and emptiness felt during the grieving process can go on for months or years, however no two people will ever respond to the same situation in the same way. Working through grief is a day by day, week by week process. You may have bad days when you think you will never recover from this loss. You may also think that you will... »
Whether the relationship ends or not, when infidelity occurs some serious losses are felt. Losses can be physical or symbolic and may include: »
Jim had come to counselling to seek help with dealing with the sale of his late mother’s estate. He was experiencing a lot of anger with the issue and also with his brother, Frank, who was joint inheritor. Frank was facing bankruptcy and needed the proceeds of the sale of the family home to save his business. »
Grief is a complex and individual process. There are a number of well documented stages to the grief process such as numbness, guilt, despair, panic and acceptance to name a few. The order in which these stages are experienced and the intensity and duration of each stage will be different for each individual. »
Tina presented to counselling due to her partner recommending it. Tina agreed with him that she had been feeling low in mood and distant from her partner over the last six months, and she agreed that it was time for her to try and do something about it. »
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