National Grief Awareness Day

Grief takes many forms and is a very personal experience. Psychologists have identified several stages of the process of grief, and people may find themselves skipping through them or going through the cycles over and over before they reach a "new normal We found a good definition for grief.."

1. Support a grieving friend - Many people struggle to show support for someone they know who is grieving. As a result, many people do nothing, and their friends and friendships suffer. Here is a site I found that gives guidance about how to reach out to a grieving friend. Sometimes it is enough to reach out and allow your friend to talk and for you to listen and assure them of our positive support. Everyday activities may become "too much," so offer your help with those things if you can. Other activities mentioned below for self-care can be shared with a friend, so if you can, join your grieving friend in those activities.

2. Engage in self-care - It means participating in activities that promote your well-being and reduces the stress in your life. If you are grieving and experiencing raw emotions then good council will tell you to accept them and be patient and gentle with yourself as you process those emotions. The feelings of fear, sadness, guilt, anger, and confusion are normal during this time. As everyone experiences grief differently, self-care can take on just as many different forms: Listening to music, playing a game, getting a massage, having a spa day, exercising, gardening, building something, meditation, and even watching a movie. If you need more help than friends or self-care can give, know that it is okay to ask for help.

3. Educate & share - Everyone alive has the unfortunate opportunity to experience grief at some point. It is part of our shared human experience. It is also why even as we encourage you to be gentle with yourself, we recommend that you extend that courtesy to others. On this #NationalGriefAwarenessDay , we hope that if you or anyone you care about is going through the process of grief, you know that you are not alone.