Grief Centre
Click here for the Grief Centre.
Grief is a normal and healthy response to loss. Bereavement is described as the state of loss when someone close to an individual has died. Many people respond very differently to this stage of grief, but there are many places that are well equipped to help deal with your grief.
How am I supposed to feel when I have lost someone I am close to?
There is no right or wrong way to grieve, and there is no one way that you are supposed to feel.
Losing someone you love is very painful and you will experience a range of different emotions during this time. These could be emotions such as shock, anger, and guilt, as well as an overwhelming sense of sadness or loneliness at times.
For some of us these feelings are not normal and can be frightening but they are a normal reaction to loss and it is ok to feel them. You need to accept them as a part of the grieving process and allow yourself the time to feel the different emotions.
How long will my grieving last?
There is no real time frame, or no normal time, for how long your grieving should last.
Healing from losing someone happens gradually and is something that cannot be forced or hurried. It is also dependent on the circumstances around the passing of your loved one, as well as how you deal with things. Some people start to feel better in weeks or months and for others it takes longer.
Sudden death can often be seen as being harder; however, the greatest loss is the one that the grieving person is suffering right now.
How do I deal with a sudden death?
A sudden, accidental or unexpected death changes your world as you know it. It can leave you feeling shaken, unsure and reeling in what has happened for quite some time.
You may find that your grief response following a sudden death is intensified because of the lack of time you have had to say goodbye. Sometimes there is unfinished business. This can generate a wide range of feelings including anger, guilt, extreme shock, depression and a real sense of hopelessness.
How do I deal with a suicide?
Grief from any passing of a loved one is hard. However, suicide brings with it, its own deep issues because of the traumatic nature of the death.
Suicide can leave the family with a huge number of unanswered questions and also an overwhelming sense of guilt. The greatest thing to remember is that no one was to blame for the suicide.
