Grief and Grieving
“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die…” Ecclesiastes 3: 1-2
The bible is full of little nuggets of wisdom to help us though this journey of life and whether you’ve read it or not…whether you believe or not, the fact remains that there is much wisdom to be gained from its words. In the past few days it seems like I have been surrounded by friends and co-workers who have all lost close family members since the new year. Some losses have had a profound impact on our community and others the impact weighs heavily on family and friends. No matter what the situation, the loss of a loved one creates a void that can be painful for those of us left behind who are often full of questions that are often left unanswered. Life is a circle that starts at birth and ultimately ends with death and there is no getting around this fact…we are all born and then we all pass on. Even though we all know this and understand this fact on a basic level it is still never easy for us to look towards tomorrow when we experience the loss of a loved one. We all deal with grief and the process of grieving differently and in our own way…the important thing is that we do grieve, that we do allow ourselves to mourn the passing of a loved one as a part of the process of healing and recovering from that grief.
Mental Health America shares that even when the death of a loved one is expected the bereaved experience a multitude of emotions such as Denial, Disbelief, Confusion, Shock, Sadness, Yearning, Anger, Humiliation, Despair, & Guilt. These feelings are normal but may be experienced with greater intensity and for a greater duration but it is all normal. The key to recovering from a loss is to go through the process of mourning and experiencing the grief that is associated with the loss. There are physical responses to loss as well as psychological responses and they can manifest themselves in many different ways. It is critical to the healing process to allow the body to go through these various states of grief and allowing the expression of the feelings that are welling up inside your body. By expressing these feelings openly, you are in essence opening a release valve and letting the stress of the event escape rather than holing it in. Holding in the emotions and feelings brought on by the grief of loss can cause physical and psychological harm over time.
In dealing with grief it is recommended that the bereaved seek out caring people and express their feelings. One of the worse things a person who is grieving could do is shut themselves off from the world and those that care for them. Take care of your health, resist things that numb the pain of loss like alcohol and drugs as this will only prolong the healing process. Eating well and getting out for a walk can help boost the bodies mood boosting abilities. Postpone major life changes, the midst of grief is not the best time for life changing decisions, the added stress brought about by major changes could magnify the feelings of loss and create more long term lasting issues. The final bit of advice is to be patient. The mourning process is just that, a process and it takes time and that time is different for all of us but time does help lessen the pain of the loss.
My thoughts and love go out to those who have lost loved ones so recently and to those who are still grieving for those who have passed on months or years ago, it is a process, stay with it, the process works. Thank you for reading, if you think you might know someone this could help, please pass it on. I hope everyone has a good week moving forward, take care of yourself and each other, we’re all in this together.
Wm Reid
Best Home Care Services
325 N Eastern Ave
Connersville, IN 47331
765-827-9833
wmreid@bhcshealth.com