How To Support Someone Who Is Grieving?

After an unconventional year in the middle of a global pandemic, more people than ever are grieving the loss of loved ones, old lifestyles, companionship, and more. If you or someone you love is hurting because you’ve lost someone or something, there are ways you can show support to others. For ways to help a grieving friend, and even help yourself, read on.

Personalized Tributes of Compassion

One of the best ways to show empathy and sympathy for someone who’s grieving or going through a difficult time is to send them a personalized card or gift. If someone you care about has lost someone, experienced a recent death, lost a beloved pet, or is otherwise grieving, you can show them you care by visiting Shutterfly. At Shutterfly, you can design a personal gift with the right words to express any compassionate sentiment. Not only will this show the person you care about that you support them in their time of grief, but it might help you handle your own sadness and heartbreak as well.

Show your deepest sympathy with a personalized pillow, mug, wall hanging, or card. Adding a heartfelt message will let the person you care about know you have their best intentions at heart and wish them positive outcomes in managing their grieving process. You might be surprised how a sympathy card and understanding sympathy can help someone make it through one day to the next as they grieve.

Professional Help

When a person is grieving, sometimes condolences aren’t enough. If someone you care about needs help, consider reaching out to a grief therapist. Start with a Google search for the location the grieving person lives in like “DC therapists” for a grief-stricken person in Washington, DC, or “New York grief counseling” for a counselor in New York City.

Many people don’t know that there are therapists out there who specialize in grief and the grieving process. The reality is that experienced therapists, social workers, and psychologists can help the person you care about to manage their grief. After finding a few names of therapists who might be able to help, consider talking to your loved one about what’s out there and available. While they may not take you up on the offer to see a clinical social worker now, it’s something they might reach toward later as their grief changes and evolves.

Active Listening

A strong support system can go a long way in helping anyone through the grieving process. A family therapist may be able to help with recommendations to a grief support group. In the meantime, one of the best things you can do for your friend or family member is to listen actively and without judgment knowing there are no right or wrong answers on how people work through grief.

Letting your friend or family member know you’re there to talk any time of day or night, that you understand their feelings are evolving, and that you’re there for them no matter what is a great way to help them feel most supported. Regardless of if you reach out to a licensed therapist or not, you’ll at least be helping them to feel less alone as they process their heartache.

In the end, no two people experience grief exactly the same way. It’s okay to feel how you feel and let others around you do the same. In letting others know you care about their grief, offering them help, reaching out to professionals, and just being there to listen, you can go a long way in helping your loved one and yourself.