Healthy Grieving After Losing A Loved One

We have a guest blogger visiting our site today. Lucille Rosetti is the creator of Thebereved.org.  Having lost some of the people closest to her, she understands what it’s like, and how it can be an emotional roller coaster that doesn’t always seem to make sense. She created her website as a means of sharing tools to help people through the grief process. Keep reading for some of her tips on how grieve in a healthy way…

There are no words that truly capture what you’re going through. The death of someone you love can be called tragic, devastating, or world-changing, but none of those accurately describe how you feel right now. That’s because everyone grieves in their own way.

However, there are unhealthy ways people grieve the loss of a loved one. If these go unchecked, you could find yourself prolonging your pain and developing some unhealthy habits. Read on to learn more about how you can go through healthy grieving and what choices you should make to mourn without hurting yourself.

Image Source: Pixabay

What Unhealthy Grieving Looks Like

While no two people ever mourn the same way, there are some common ways people tend to grieve. Share Care explains that some normal responses to grief include crying, feeling drained, guilt, anger, and being less productive or talkative. These are normal because you just went through a devastating loss.

But as the Huffington Post explains, you could experience an unhealthy version called prolonged grief. This is when your grief (and the responses it brings) does not get better over time. It’s also when those normal responses are severe. Being less productive turns into quitting your job or feeling drained leads to staying in bed for days at a time.

In other words, it’s entirely normal and even healthy to experience depression, guilt, and more after losing someone you love. Eventually, those feelings will fade. When they do not, then you are in the grips of unhealthy grieving.

Dealing With Grief

Thankfully, there are ways you can deal with grief in a healthy way. The National Institute on Aging lists several things you can to for healthy grieving. Firstly, you have to take care of your body. Eat well, get some exercise, and get enough sleep every day. Keeping your body healthy will improve your mood, which can help you get through the grieving process more easily.

You also need to maintain your relationships with family and friends. They want to be there for you, but some might not know how. Reach out to them and ask for their help. If they offer support, take it. Let someone cook you dinner, take you out to a movie, or just listen on the phone. Sometimes, just talking to someone about your feelings can help prevent prolonged grief.

If talking to friends and family doesn’t help, you should consider speaking to a therapist or counselor. They have the training to help you avoid unhealthy patterns from developing as you go through your grieving process.

Making Good Choices

As you grieve the death of a loved one, you will be faced with many important choices. What should the funeral be like? Should you stay in that home you shared? Right now, it’s best to avoid making important decisions. You’re dealing with an incredibly tough loss, so your mind isn’t in the best state to make these choices.

Instead, you need to learn to love yourself first. Spend time on self-care instead of big decisions. Enjoy a hobby, learn something new, and give yourself space to heal. Chances are, you have some guilt over the death even though you had nothing to do with it. That’s why you need time to love yourself again.

Your Grief Will Pass Eventually

Mourning the loss of a loved one takes time, but you should know it will end. To avoid prolonged grief, take care of your body, speak with others, and spend some time taking care of your own needs. This won’t lessen the pain, but it will help it end sooner.