August 30 is Grief Awareness Day
Grief is usually the response to a loss in your life. It can happen to anyone at any age. Grief Awareness Day is about recognizing the experience of grief, raising awareness of coping mechanisms, and helping others that are suffering.
People can experience grief in multiple stages—and helping someone go through them can be so important in their ability to find happiness again:
- Denial: Someone does not accept the reason for the grief in the first place. They may not believe a death or other type of loss has even occurred. Just being there for someone going through this is all that matters at that point in time.
- Anger: This is when the grieving person lashes out at everyone around them. One needs to be cautious of violent behaviors during this period.
- Bargaining: The grieving individual is focused on a belief or “what ifs.”
- Depression: This is when reality sets in, hitting the person hard and bringing them down.
- Acceptance: This stage can take a while to get there. This is when the person can look forward to the future and not stay focused on the past. They will not forget what caused the grief, but they will be able to move forward.
“One of the biggest misconceptions is that there should be a time limit on grieving, or that grief occurs in a specific order of steps/stages,” says Karen Helmes, MS, LPC, Outpatient Therapist, Acenda Counseling and Wellness Centers, Glassboro. “Grief does not have a time limit. It might lessen over time but will always be with you. Stages are phases that one might go through, but in no particular order and you can re-visit them.”
If you or someone you know is going through a difficult time, having a support system of family and friends is very important. Counseling and additional support can also help during the grieving process. Call our main number at 844-4-ACENDA (844-422-3632 x9500) for more information about our counseling and telehealth services.
Sources:
www.betterhelp.com
www.mayoclinic.org