Common Grief Reactions

• Feel tightness in the throat or heaviness in the chest
• Have a empty feeling in the stomach and loss of appetite
• Have feelings of great fatigue, that the slightest activity is a burden
• Feel restless and look for activity, but find it difficult to concentrate
• Feel as though the loss isn’t real, that it didn’t really happen
• Sense the loved one’s presence; have the expectation that the loved one will soon walk through the door, hear their voice, see a glimpse of them passing by
• Wander aimlessly about the house; start things and may forget what they were doing, starting projects and not finishing them
• Have difficulty sleeping; frequent dreams of loved one
• Assume mannerisms and traits of the loved one
• Experience changes in mood for no apparent reason; feel irritated at the slightest of things
• Unexpectedly burst into tears or feel overcome by an overwhelming feeling of sadness
• Feel guilty about all the “what ifs…”, feel they didn’t do enough, could have done more, etc.
• Feel anger about the unfairness or unjustness of the loss; anger at the loved one for leaving, etc.

Physical symptoms can accompany the loss. Not only through our tears do we cry out pangs of grief, our bodies have many ways of weeping with us.

MANY PEOPLE WHO SUFFER A LOSS EXPERIENCE ONE OF MORE OF THE FOLLOWING:

Published on Jun 15 2016