The issue of grief is coming up a lot lately, for me and for folks around me.
Clearly, grief is one of those things
we cannot escape.
It is part of the circle of life.
And why God allows difficult things to happen? Well, that is far behind the scope of this little blog. But the truth is, He does. And I believe that if we process our grief and learn from it we can grow and mature when difficult things occur.
Processing our grief is a very important step towards healing. And allowing ourselves to experience the full range of emotions during grief can help us to recover more quickly.
You may be aware that many people refer to the
5 stages of grief.
This is the idea that folks move through grief in different ways and in different stages. (The model was introduced by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross in her 1969 book "On Death and Dying".)
Check them out here and see what you think:
Denial, numbness, and shock - This serves to protect the individual from experiencing the intensity of the loss.
- Numbness is a normal reaction to an immediate loss and should not be confused with "lack of caring".
- Denial and disbelief will diminish as the individual slowly acknowledges the impact of this loss and accompanying feelings.
Bargaining - At times, individuals may ruminate about what could have been done to prevent the loss.
- Individuals can become preoccupied about ways that things could have been better, imagining all the things that will never be.
- This reaction can provide insight into the impact of the loss; however, if not properly resolved, intense feelings of remorse or guilt may hinder the healing process.
Depression - After recognizing the true extent of the loss, some individuals may experience depressive symptoms.
- Sleep and appetite disturbance, lack of energy and concentration, and crying spells are some typical symptoms.
- Feelings of loneliness, emptiness, isolation, and self-pity can also surface during this phase, contributing to this reactive depression.
- For many, this phase must be experienced in order to begin reorganizing one’s life.
Anger - This reaction usually occurs when an individual feels helpless and powerless.
- Anger may result from feeling abandoned, occurring in cases of loss through death.
- Feelings of resentment may occur toward one’s higher power or toward life in general for the injustice of this loss.
- After an individual acknowledges anger, guilt may surface due to expressing these negative feelings.
- Again, these feelings are natural and should be honored to resolve the grief.
Acceptance - Time allows the individual an opportunity to resolve the range of feelings that surface.
- The grieving process supports the individual. That is, healing occurs when the loss becomes integrated into the individual’s set of life experiences.
- Individuals may return to some of the earlier feelings throughout one’s lifetime.
There is no time limit to the grieving process. Each individual should define one’s own healing process.
Factors that may hinder the healing process: - Avoidance or minimization of one’s emotions.
- Use of alcohol or drugs to self-medicate.
- Use of work (overfunction at workplace) to avoid feelings.
Guidelines that may help resolve grief: - Allow time to experience thoughts and feelings openly to self.
- Acknowledge and accept all feelings, both positive and negative.
- Use a journal to document the healing process.
- Confide in a trusted individual; tell the story of the loss.
- Express feelings openly. Crying offers a release.
- Identify any unfinished business and try to come to a resolution.
- Bereavement groups provide an opportunity to share grief with others who have experienced similar loss.
- If the healing process becomes too overwhelming, seek professional help.
[I have posted on grief
once before.]
Recently my husband had to drive quite a ways from our house and pass several gas stations before he was able to find gas for our car. 
