If you want to help them grieve Dear One:
- Ask them what happened
- Ask them how they are doing
- Ask them how they are feeling
If you want to help them heal:
- Ask them to tell you about the one that they lost
- Ask them to tell you what they love most about them
- Ask them to tell you how they made them laugh
- Ask them to tell you how they made them feel
- Help them to remember, and re-connect, with love not loss
Oh yes. Platitudes do nothing…connecting and talking and having a meaningful dialogue about the loved one who is missed makes all the difference. Thank you for sharing these beautiful words.
Thank you for these talking points. I think they are very good in that they help someone focus on the good times they had with their loved one. Having gone through the loss of both of my parents within 7 weeks of each other, I can tell you first hand that everyone experiences grief in a unique way. Most people told me they thought this was such a terrible loss, especially because I am an only child, but both of my parents were very ill and suffered at the ends of their lives. I was relieved, as much as anything else, when they passed and most people are not comfortable hearing that unless they have experienced something similar.