Many bereaved people ask this straight forward question, but it often comes with more complex concerns behind it. They are not usually asking for a precise timetable but rather asking in a subtle way is whether what they are feeling… Continue reading
Grief is often imagined as something visibly emotional such as through tears, longing, sadness, disorganisation, a need to talk. When people do not grieve in these ways, they are frequently misunderstood by others and by themselves. Some bereaved people carry… Continue reading
Grief and attachment can quietly change how we relate to others. After a significant loss, many people notice something unsettling coming through from their ongoing attachment to the person who has died: they do not feel like themselves anymore. You… Continue reading
Earlier this week, a robin followed me around the garden. It stayed close, moving from place to place as I worked. This in itself was not unusual. What gave the moment its weight was the timing. It happened on the… Continue reading
Many bereaved people notice that grief is not only about missing someone. It is also about the difficulty of understanding what has happened to the relationship itself. The person has died, yet the bond does not simply disappear. Feelings of… Continue reading
Many bereaved people find that, over time, the pressure to “get past” grief becomes more difficult than grief itself. Early on, grief is often recognised as intense and unavoidable. Later, there may be an expectation – sometimes subtle, sometimes explicit… Continue reading
Across cultures and across history, grief has rarely been seen as only a private emotion. Many societies have understood loss as a threshold — a point of transition where something ends and something else begins. While the language and rituals… Continue reading
As time passes after a death, the language people use around grief often changes. Early on, there may be an understanding that grief is intense and disruptive. Later, there is often an expectation—sometimes unspoken—that grief should lessen to the point… Continue reading
For many bereaved people, returning to work happens sooner than they feel ready for. Practical pressures, financial concerns, or limited leave often mean that work resumes while grief is still very present. From the outside, this can look like a… Continue reading
Many bereaved people find that one of the most difficult parts of grief is not the intensity of their feelings, but the difficulty of talking about them with others. Friends and family often want to help, yet their responses can… Continue reading