Coping with Grief & Loss
On your journey to living life effectively you must understand while there is no right or wrong way to grieve, there are healthy ways to deal with the grieving process.
In this week’s blog, I would like to help you understand how to deal with grief and loss more effectively. I think first and foremost we must understand what it is. So, what is grief?
Grief is a natural response to loss. It’s the emotional suffering you feel when something or someone you love is taken away. Often, the pain of loss can feel overwhelming. You may experience all kinds of difficult and unexpected emotions, from shock or anger to disbelief, guilt, and profound sadness. The pain of grief can also disrupt your physical health, making it difficult to sleep, eat, or even think straight. These are normal reactions to loss—and the more significant the loss, the more intense your grief may be.
This is so real on so many levels. Coping with the loss of someone or something you love is one of life’s biggest challenges. You may associate grieving with the death of a loved one, which is often the cause of the most intense type of grief, but any loss can cause grief, including:
1. Divorce or relationship breakup
2. Loss of health
3. Loss of employment
4. Loss of financial stability
5. Loss of a cherished dream
6. A loved one’s serious illness
7. Loss of a friendship
Even subtle losses in life can trigger a sense of grief. You’ve got to understand that loss and grief are a part of life.
Whatever your loss, it’s personal to you. Do not feel ashamed about how you feel nor believe it’s somehow only appropriate to grieve for certain things.
Grieving is a highly individual experience; there’s no right or wrong way to grieve. How you grieve depends on many factors, including your personality and coping style, your life experience, your faith, and how significant the loss was to you.
Inevitably, the grieving process takes time.
Healing happens gradually; it can’t be forced or hurried and there is no “normal” timetable for grieving. Some people start to feel better in weeks or months. For others, the grieving process is measured in years. Whatever your grief experience, it’s important to be patient with yourself and allow the process to naturally unfold.
A healthy way to cope with grief is to exercise. We invite you to start training and register for our next Effective Living 5k Run/Walk Meetup. We'll be back at River Legacy Park in Arlington, TX on Saturday, August 21 at 7:00 a.m. Your registration includes a shirt, water bottle, and wristband, with proceeds from this event going towards Mission Bahamas 2021. We had a great time at our last 5k and want you to be apart of this one. It's not about competition, but about completion. Hope to see you there!
