When you try to push through a painful experience without feeling your emotions
you prolong the journey of recovery.–Nedra Glover Tawwab
This couldn’t be any truer and it is especially true of grief.
I know this, myself, because sometimes I just can’t go there with a loss and it’s those times that make recovery–or, as I prefer to call it, transformation, much more difficult.
We don’t ever really “recover” from grief. Over time, we can transform it into something else–beautiful memories, warm feelings, love–whatever it is. But grief isn’t a disease we “recover” from.
STILL
That doesn’t mean we don’t need to address those thoughts, feel those emotions, because hard as they are, painful as they can be, they MUST be dealt with so we can move forward and be fairly functional in our lives. Surprisingly for those of us who have had a great loss, our lives go on. And we must live them.
If we’re lucky, we have a loving friend or companion to help us do this. But more often than not, people don’t know how to help us. How to hold space for us. No matter how well-meaning they might be, talking about your grief with them is not helpful.
I process my grief alone because for me, that is the safest space to do that. (If I do not talk to a grief counselor) And that’s how I ended up writing a guided journal with prompts to help us manage through our grief.
The reason A Guided Journal through Grief gets all five-star reviews is that it’s a tool structured specifically to help those who grieve process the emotions around grief in a safe, gentle and judgment-free way. On the page. Responding to prompts with words, photos, drawings, collage, images–however works best for you.
It is, arguably, the most useful condolence gift you can give someone. The one that helps them the most.
Friends have taken it to their loved one’s grave to spark thought or even talk. Customers complete it and pass it along to younger family who might not have known the person who has passed away. And manywho refer to it time and time again as a remembrance.
To a one, those who use it find it helpful in their grief. I know this, because they email me their gratitude, all the time. Which is why it’s such a thoughtful condolence gift. And one that is very affordable. Two very good traits for a condolence gift.
It’s available alone or as part of a small or large gift that includes other grief tools. See them all here— if it’s lavender, it is a grief tool. Or feel free to ask me about any of them.
