Coping with Loss

Coping with loss can be difficult regardless of what kind of loss we are trying to handle.  We can be trying to cope with a broken relationship, a lost job or a financial loss.  We can also be dealing with the death of a loved one.  In January we lost my husband's 96 year old mother to kidney failure.  It has been a difficult time for both of us but especially for my husband.  He loved his mom deeply. 

According to Wikipedia.com there are five stages of grief that should never be rushed.   They are denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance.  I don't think these stages have clear margins as all of these feelings seem to be overlapping already.  For those of us who normally suffer from depression, the margins are even less clear as our depression will probably continue through each stage.  

I wonder where anxiety fits into these stages.  Anxiety is something my husband and I are both dealing with as we go through the grief stages.  Maybe it's the same kind of anxiety many of us have when there are changes of any kind in our lives.  This anxiety has taken many forms including nightmares and over eating.  Hopefully as we cope with the loss we will move past this anxiety. 

I remember when my dad passed away in 1990 and my mom in 1999 .   I thought I would never recover from those losses and reach the acceptance stage.  I did.  Acceptance sounds as though it should feel okay.  Acceptance feels sad to me.  I doubt the sadness ever leaves us.  I believe my experience in coping with loss is helping me to help my husband now.  I guess that's a good thing. 

Thank you for reading my blog.

 

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  • 2/22/2010 8:55 AM Tanglewood Real Estate wrote:
    When my grandma died, I really didn't cry a lot but the sadness lingered on for so many months.
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  • 2/23/2010 9:22 PM Tamela wrote:
    Thank you so much for elaborating on loss. Obviously, there is nothing more painful than the loss of a loved one, for it is a human connection that can't be recreated. Even still, there are so many losses that we must endure in a lifetime, that, sometimes the pain it carries can be as familiar as that which is linked to human loss.

    I have lost a set of grandparents and a handful of great friends to death and that's a pain which is ressurected whenever I think about them. At the same time, I currently find myself dealing with the loss of my own youth, which brings about a high level of anxiety that - until reading this, I did not even realize was there. I love your blog. It's very insightful and helpful.
    http://tamiwami28.blogspot.com/
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  • 3/3/2010 10:39 AM Therapy4help wrote:
    IT is very informative blog
    Reply to this
  • 3/6/2010 4:44 AM From depression to happiness wrote:
    I think acceptance doesn't mean that we don't remember anymore. We do. It's just that we go on with our lives and we don't wake up in the middle of the night because of the nightmares anymore. Acceptance is good. Otherwise we couldn't adapt properly anymore. But I guess we have to pass though all the stages of grief in order to consolidate our peace of mind in the very end.
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  • 3/10/2010 9:27 PM lilyruth wrote:
    Dearest Friends you both have my condolences in yur time of loss. You both are strong and can cope if you both give each other love and understanding and patience. I know you both will. Know my prayers are with you both. Take care and Know my thoughts are with you. Invite you to get your mind on something else like visit my crazy weird blog it will put a smile on yur face. Be looking for you. Hope with your help to meet my goal. I checked out yours.
    Reply to this
  • 3/14/2010 9:28 PM HAYDENTraci27 wrote:
    I had got a dream to make my organization, but I did not have got enough of cash to do it. Thank God my close mate told to use the home loans. Hence I received the collateral loan and made real my old dream.
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  • 3/15/2010 12:27 AM asx share trading wrote:
    Recently i have ran across this site and found it very interesting and informative. But one thing is very paining that you have not update it yet. Plz update this awesome blog.
    Reply to this
  • 4/9/2010 1:20 AM party supplies wrote:
    Tell your experience,do you think the dental hygiene job crisis will improve in the next 5 years?thanks.
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  • 4/9/2010 12:35 PM marin wrote:
    Acceptance is very sad and leaves an emptiness inside that I don't think you can fill...
    Reply to this
  • 4/27/2010 4:44 AM Sample sponsorship Letter wrote:
    Most people have more than one significant loss over the span of a lifetime. The grief that accompanies a loss can feel unbearable.
    Reply to this

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