Practical Steps For Dealing With The Death Of A Loved One
One of the factors that make grieving so difficult is that there is no way to deal with it. You can’t make it disappear overnight or fast-forward through the hardest parts. For certain people, while feelings of acute grief become less frequent with time, there will still be a part of them that is always grieving.
With this in mind, the best thing you can hope for is to find ways to deal with the grief and find little acts that make the sadness more bearable. Here are some constructive and practical tips that can help you find some comfort in a difficult time in your life.
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Express your feelings
Psychologists have spoken for a long time about the effects of sharing how you feel. Studies have shown that speaking about feelings has a significant impact on the brain and decreases the magnitude of the emotion. Essentially, it is important that you find a way to recognize and embrace how you feel. It does not always have to involve talking to someone else if you are uncomfortable talking about your grief -try writing in a journal instead or even visit the grave markers for the cemetery and talk to your loved one about how you feel. Just expressing it can make you feel a little better.
Take care of yourself
Grief also triggers disturbed sleep habits and a loss of appetite. This may have a significant impact on your physical health, which will only make you feel worse. Though you can’t make your sadness go away, keeping yourself physically healthy can give you the strength to deal with your emotions. Sleep when you can and try to eat well.
Join a support group
Support groups allow people with similar experiences to connect and share their feelings. You can find that meeting people who understand you makes you feel less isolated. If you are not ready, you won’t be forced to share your story, but listening to someone else and knowing that you are not on your own in how you feel can be beneficial. ⠀
Volunteer
There is mounting evidence from various studies that doing volunteer work has a positive emotional effect. As well as offering a distraction, doing something to help others can make you feel better about the world, improve your self-confidence, and help you to meet new people.
Find a new hobby
Having a new hobby to devote your time to can be a fun way to relax and give you something to look forward to occasionally. Creative hobbies like the handicrafts will provide you with a sense of accomplishment, while physical activities like sports will improve the chemicals in your brain that are responsible for positive emotions and keep you healthy.
Implement a routine
Most people find that sticking to a routine gives them a sense of order and stability to their day during an otherwise uncertain time. Small things like going to bed at the same time or deciding what you see going to do with your weekend will help. It will give direction and clarification to at least one aspect of your life as you learn to manage your grief.
