Humans as we are, we will all experience loss and grief in our lifetime. If you have friends or colleagues who are going through such tough time, here are some tips for you. –          Don’t say “I know how you feel.” –          Convey empathy, compassion and love. –          Allow the person to talk about their story and his emotions. –          Don’t ever say that the deceased person is now in a better place. –          Don’t say “You will get over this.” For more tips, click here.

Losing one’s loved one is probably the last thing on earth that you would like to think about. However, because of the increasing costs associated with burial, it is important that you think and plan ahead. Below are some tips on how to cut costs on funeral arrangements. –       Get multiple quotes from different funeral homes. –       Skip embalming if you have a viewing or visitation ceremony. –       Opt for a grave liner. –       Buy the urn or casket elsewhere as funeral homes charge a fee for using a casket. For more tips, click here.

Change is the only constant thing in life and it is certain that everyone will pass away. During such time of grief, many people seek support from their family and friends but there are also those who have no such support system. In Pearl River County, there is a group that meets once a month to offer support to those people who have just lost their loved ones. The meetings are free to attend and everything discussed is kept confidential. To learn more, visit picayuneitem.com.

There are five generally accepted stages of grief. While these are commonly tackled when a cherished person passes a way, they also apply when a beloved pet dies. Many pet owners have gotten so attached to their furry companions that they are stuck in shock, disbelief and denial when the latter passes away. This isn’t necessarily a negative experience as it creates a distraction from grief, allowing them to focus on important arrangements, such as burial or cremation. Eventually, they would have to move on to anger, bargaining, depression and, finally, acceptance. All these stages are normal and important to coping with grief. Click here to learn more.

Some say that learning of a loved one’s imminent death allows you time to cope sooner. What they fail to take into consideration is when a person devotes herself to caring for the individual that she ends up feeling empty when the latter passes away. Moving forward after the death of a loved one takes accepting the reality of the loss, experiencing the feeling of grief, adjusting to an environment in which the deceased is missing, and taking the emotional energy you would have spent on the one who died and reinvest it in another relationship or relationships. To learn more, click here.

Jason Garner, a CEO of global music for Live Nation, wishes he had simply talked to his co-workers more about his mother and her death.  More so, he wishes he was able to share his grief instead of shutting down completely. In retrospect, Garner still remembers how the support poured in the moment he started sharing his feelings of isolation. According to him, he wishes he had taken more breaks during the work day to be alone because it would have helped him cope better. To learn more, click here.

According to experts, there are five stages in the cycle of grief and loss: disbelief, bargaining, anger, depression and acceptance. While a person may bounce back and forth between these stages, one can also get stuck in one area for a time. Disbelief is the stage in the grieving process where a person constantly denies the reality of death. Bargaining, on the other hand, involves a coping mechanism in which the person believes that he or she can negotiate his way out of what is currently happening to him. Anger takes the form of control while depression is where most people think grief and loss beings. According to experts, acceptance can only be achieved when a person realizes that things are what they are. To learn more, click here.

Seeing a friend or a classmate try to cope with death of a loved one can be a very upsetting experience for children. However, parents and caring adults can do so much more to help their children or young teens understand death and grief. Below are some tips. –          Clarify your children’s understanding of death. –          Reassure the children that their own families are safe. –          Help children anticipate some change in their friends’ behavior. –          Help the children understand that their friendship may be an important source of support for friends and classmates. For more tips, click here.

Making children understand the reality of death can be a very tough job. The first instinct of parents and caring adults is to protect their children from loss and inevitable grieving process. However, adults should know that shielding them will actually do more harm than good. Below are some tips on how to help young children deal with death and grief. –          Allow children to express their feelings by acknowledging your own feelings of grief. –          Encourage them to spend time with their friends and peers. –          Seek help from a mental health provider when needed. –          Listen and understand your child’s unique reaction. For more tips, visit courierpress.com.

Whether expected or unexpected, dealing with the loss of a loved one is never easy. During the coping process, a person may experience grief due to anger or feelings of being overwhelmed. You typically go through the five stages of grief, which are denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. While the entire process can be very difficult to comprehend, there are things that you can do to make coping with loss less hard: – Take all those emotions and put it into something positive. – Find support groups online or in your area to help you go through the pain. – Find a counselor or a therapist to talk to when you are falling into depression. To learn more, click here.