Posts Tagged ‘choices’
Friday, December 13th, 2013
Grief and the holidays are especially difficult — and there’s just no getting around it. Even when your loss was sometime ago, the holidays bring memories back to life. With time and healing, perhaps you can look back on those memories with smiles and gratitude rather than the crushing pain you felt earlier – yet emotions seem to be supercharged at this time of the year.
I read a beautiful article written by Katherine Ingram about her experience of grief and the holidays. The thoughts she shares are similar to my own. I could identify with her heartfelt (and wise) words, and I hope they will speak to you, too. I asked her permission to share the article – and she graciously agreed.
Hope you’ll click on the link to read Katherine’s article. I think you’ll be blessed if you do.
Here’s the link – Good Grief: The Holiday Edition
Photo courtesy of www.bing.com
Tags: choices, Christmas, getting on with things, grief and the holidays, grieving, healing, mourning
Posted in Coping with Grief, Decisions and choices, Holidays, anniversaries, special occasions, Needs of grievers, Stunned by Grief | Comments Off on Grief and the Holidays
Wednesday, October 16th, 2013
Stop for a minute and think about your approach to grief. Do you face it like a cheetah, a turtle, or an ant?
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Tags: choices, decisions, face grief head-on, grieving process, your approach to grief
Posted in Animals, Attitude, Coping with Grief, Decisions and choices, Effects of Grief, Stunned by Grief | Comments Off on Which Best Describes Your Approach to Grief — a Cheetah, a Turtle, or an Ant?
Sunday, May 12th, 2013
Mother’s Day is here—and while it will be a time of laughter and celebration for some, others will struggle just to get through the day. Can joy and grief live together?
If you’re mourning the loss of your mom, or if your mom is fighting a devastating illness, or if personal heartbreak clouds your celebration of this special day, can you still experience joy wherever you are? I have a few suggestions for you to consider. I know this subject can be very difficult, and my intention is to open your mind to a few things you may not have considered. I’m also going to share a personal confession with you, so please keep reading.
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Tags: avoiding guilt, choices, gratitude, joy and grief, Mohter's Day
Posted in Attitude, Coping with Grief, Decisions and choices, Gratitude, Holidays, anniversaries, special occasions, Stunned by Grief | 2 Comments »
Friday, February 15th, 2013
The faces of grief are an ever-changing landscape unique to each person’s experience. Depending on where you are in the process, the face of your grief and the words you use to describe it will vary all over the map.
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Tags: choices, decisions about grief, effects of grief, faces of grief, grief changes, grief process, hope
Posted in Changes, Coping with Grief, Decisions and choices, Effects of Grief, Hope, Stunned by Grief | Comments Off on The Many Faces of Grief
Friday, September 21st, 2012
You may be wondering what I’m really saying. Choose to grieve?
You’ve just been overwhelmed by a major loss. You feel powerless. You’re in agonizing pain. You don’t know what to do or think. And I’m urging you to choose to grieve. What do I mean?
At first, your pain will spread to nearly everything you see, think, and feel. Your thinking will likely be impaired and unfocused, and your concentration reduced. You won’t be in a position to consider and make logical decisions right away. However, don’t be overly concerned. This fuzzy state of mind will improve.
Your initial state of shock and disbelief is your body’s way of protecting you. Your loss is too difficult to absorb all at once, so your body and mind seem to enter into an ‘autopilot’ state. You’re able to function in a basic way, but at the same time, your body protects you from grasping all that is happening within and around you. Reality will hit soon enough.
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Tags: choices, coping with grief, grief help, healing, stunned by grief, taking action
Posted in Coping with Grief, Decisions and choices, Emotions, Response to tragedy, Stunned by Grief | 4 Comments »
Tuesday, August 14th, 2012
At any given time, loss is part of our normal, everyday experience, right along with the rest of life—including our greatest joys. When we confront losses, especially serious ones, we often have to remind ourselves that we still have goodness in our lives, too. We sometimes have to force ourselves to remember that the two tracks are always running alongside each other—and our lives are filled with joy and pain, good and bad, ups and downs—at the same time. At certain times, one track carries more weight and is more visible, and during those times the pain tends to overshadow the joy. However, even when pain is the dominant emotion we feel, that doesn’t mean everything in our lives is bad.
I am no different from anyone else. When one area of my life or one thing is really distressing, I’m just as liable as anyone else to let negativity creep into my thinking. We start to question what in our lives is positive, or when we can expect something good to happen again. This kind of thinking is a trap to avoid. We will defeat ourselves by thinking this way.
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Tags: choices, coping with grief, emotions of grief, grief help, response to grief, stunned by grief
Posted in Attitude, Coping with Grief, Decisions and choices, Emotions, Stunned by Grief | 4 Comments »
