There are a lot of options available which allow you to fully express your grief. Find which ones work for you.

Give yourself permission to feel whatever you are feeling. It’s OK.

Besides expressive arts (as mentioned in my previous Blog) other helpful strategies are:

1)     Screaming into a towel.

2)    The Gestalt approach – talking to your deceased loved one. (Pretend s/he is sitting in a chair and converse with her. Talk to her about your appreciation, regrets, etc. and say goodbye.)

3)    Lighting a candle.

4)    Adopting a hobby or interest of the loved one.

5)    Visualizations (guided imagery).

6)    Therapeutic touch – promotes relaxation, relief of pain, decrease in anxiety, tension and stress, and promotes a sense of well-being.

7)     Writing a letter to the person who has died can be very powerful. This also works with children that are grieving a death. You can also draft an imagined reply for yourself.

8) Talk into a tape recorder.

9)    Write in a journal.

10) Experiencing a “Vesuvius” (a blow-out; an eruption) in the presence of a trusted individual with appropriate precautions, rules and boundaries in place.

11)  Physical exertion (movement).

12) You’ll want to keep connected to the person who has passed on. You can cherish photos, mementos, and belongings or create any personal memorial. I know people, including myself, who have set up a memorial with photos, and other people who have made a shrine that is much more elaborate and takes up more space.

13) Planting a tree.

Melanie Hack
Author of Who Killed My Sister, My friend
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