Grief & Loss - How To Overcome It?

People often experience grief when they lose something special or someone very valuable to them. This feeling of grief and loss tends to have various adverse effects on one’s personality, relationships and health. The effects of grief on a person usually depend on different factors, which include the kind of loss suffered, the person’s beliefs, age and his mental or physical health.

Losing someone makes each one of us in a different way. Anxiety and feeling helpless are two things that mostly affect people. Feelings of anger and anxiety are also experienced in the early stages of coping with loss. The sadness creeps in eventually. Grief and loss can affect a person seriously and cause different health hazards. It is quite difficult for a person to heal instantly and they continue feeling bad for a long period of time. However, one day you will recover for sure.

Here are some ways to cope with grief and loss:

1. You have to express yourself and share all the feelings bottled inside you. You should talk about your feelings with a close friend or family member. This is the beginning of the healing process.
2. When you feel sad, you should not try to avoid it. Feeling sad is a healthy part of the process of grieving and instead of hiding the fact that you are sad under a mask, you should allow the sadness.
3. Try to follow your regular schedule instead of isolating yourself. By following a schedule you will keep yourself active, which will help in healing. You should take walks and not lock yourself up in a room as this will make your condition worse.
4. Plenty of sleep is required during the healing stage. Emotional strain makes you tired and hence, undisturbed sleep is very much essential for your health. If you do not get proper sleep, consult a doctor.
5. A healthy, balanced diet is also important for coping with loss and grief. Avoid food that will wear you down. Eat light and healthy and do not skip meals.
6. You must avoid the intake of substances, which help in easing the pain. Do not consume too much alcohol. It may temporarily numb the pain, but afterwards, you will feel worse.
7. Counselling is important after you get through the initial healing stage on your own. After several weeks or a month, you should go to a counsellor and have regular therapy sessions. The ideal time to start counselling depends wholly on you and your state.
8. Antidepressant medicines can also be taken on prescription for feeling better.

Coping with grief and loss is quite a difficult task. A lot of patience is required and instead of giving into sorrow, one must get up and take all steps required for quick recovery.