Grief is an incredibly agonising human experience but also
a natural reaction to loss. In life it is almost inevitable
that we will experience grief and loss. Although it is a
painful experience, grief is also a process that gives us
strength to take on the challenges we face in life.
People cope with grief in different ways. Some can overcome
it relatively quickly whilst others take time to get
through it. However, it is important that when those that
are close to us experience grief we help them. In this
article I discuss ten ways that we can help those close to
us get over grief.
1) DO NOT SAY YOU UNDERSTAND HOW THE PERSON FEELS:- Even if
you have experienced the exact same losses as the person
who is grieving you can still not truly understand how the
person feels. As stated above, people handle grief
differently so their experience will be unique to yours.
2) AVOID CLICHES:- For example do not try and tell the
person that time will heal the wounds. For some people this
may be true but for others the hurt will always be there.
3) AVOID TELLING THEM TO BE STRONG:- People who are dealing
with grief are very vulnerable. Telling them to be strong
is an unnecessary burden.
4) LOOK FOR SIGNS OF A PROLONGED PROBLEM:- You need to
understand the grieving process and if you see signs of a
long-term problem developing then aid the person
accordingly.
5) WRITE A PERSONAL NOTE WHICH DISPLAYS COMPASSIONATE
KINDNESS:- Written words are permanent and can be a real
source encouragement for the griever in times ahead.
6) MAKE YOURSELF AVAILABLE:- Sometimes the person who is
grieving just needs you to be there and offer a listening
ear or a shoulder to cry on.
7) ENCOURAGE THE GRIEVING PERSON TO WRITE DOWN THEIR
THOUGHTS:- This is a powerful way to get the grieving
person to release their emotions and not keep them bottled
up. It can be a great healing process.
8) ASK WHAT YOU CAN DO:- People who are grieving may care
less about day-to-day activities such as cooking, shopping
or housework. Therefore, you can offer to do these tasks
for the person whilst they grieve.
9) UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF THE LOSS:- Make sure you do
not trivialise the loss in the words you use to communicate
with the person who is grieving.
10) SHARE YOUR FEELINGS ON LOSSES YOU HAVE EXPERIENCED:- In
doing this you can empathise with the person who is
grieving. Whilst you are not telling them that you
understand what they are going through, you are making the
attempt to connect with them.
When suffering from grief people often feel isolated and
alone. If they choose to be alone then you should respect
that. However, you should not avoid the subject completely.
By talking about it you are showing that you truly care for
the person and you want to help them get through it.
Continue to show kindness and this will go a long way to
helping another human being get through a dark period in
their lives.
----------------------------------------------------
The Free Fitness Tips Blog provides you with fantastic,
free advice on all aspects of fitness including mental
fitness. To find out more about dealing with emotional
issues such as anger, fear, grief, loneliness and worry
head over to http://blog.freefitnesstips.co.uk/
No comments:
Post a Comment