In: Nursing
GRIEF
Grief is a natural response to loss. Loss can of different types like death of a loved one, a miscarriage, death of a pet, loss of a job, break up of a relationship, loss of health and so on. Grieving is different in each individual. Some may express it externally while others may experience it internally and even may not cry. The best treatment for this is to understand our own emotions and feelings well and cope up with it by seeking adequate help from self and others as needed.
Stages of grief
Typically there are five stages for grief. This means when a loss occurs, a person may go through these stages in their life. Every person goes through these stages in his or her own way which means there is no normal time to grieve. It depends on the type of loss, age, support system avaialble etc.
The stages of grief are:
DENIAL: This is a defense mechanism in which the person is not accepting the loss. He/she just denies it for a temporary period to deal with the overwhelming emotion. They may think 'this isn't happening'. The person may remain numb to all the feelings during this phase.
ANGER: As the person accepts reality, they may feel frustrated due to the pain of the loss that has happened. The feelings then turn to anger. The anger may be directed towards other people, own life, inanimate objects etc. It is natural to be angry with the loved one who died too.
BARGAINING: Grief accompanies bargaining too. In this the person thinks of something that could have done in order to prevent the loss. The person may try to make a deal with a higher power like God in an attempt to postpone the inevitable loss and pain.
DEPRESSION: As the person starts to understand the loss, the sadness sets in and he/she may appear depressed. Signs of depression include crying, loss of sleep and appetite, feeling of loneliness and even may experience suicidal ideation. If the person has a strong support system in and around, he/she can overcome this stage.
ACCEPTANCE: This is the final stage of grief. In this stage, the person accepts the reality of the loss. This is not a stage of happiness but the person is able to move forward in the life with the pain and the loss. The person may remain calm in this stage of life.
Coping with a loss is somewhat personal to everyone. Nobody can help the person fully unless he/she understands and accepts it. It may take days to years to accept a reality. It depends ultimately on the person's personality and mindset. All the support systems are needed to provide comfort in this process.