Brain Break: Managing Grief

Welcome back to the Brainiac Blog! Today I wanted to share a simple activity that can be helpful with managing grief, especially around the holiday season.

Grief is a strong emotion that all people feel when they lose someone or something that was important to them. Grief can be caused by different kinds of loss (i.e., loss of a loved one or pet, a big move, divorce, physical injury or change in mobility, etc.). It's often a time marked by intense sadness, anger, guilt, confusion, and a mix of many other emotions. These intense emotions can also lead to physical symptoms (i.e., headaches, trouble breathing, stomach issues, chest pain, etc.), disruptions in appetite, sleep, and engagement in activities that previously brought joy or fulfillment.

Some helpful ways of coping with grief include:

1. Focus on the good times. Try to remember the happy memories, look through photos, or carry an object that reminds you of the positive moments.

2. Make healthy decisions that fuel your body. Try to eat, drink water, and move your body regularly every day even when you don't feel like it.

3. Get the right amount of sleep for your body's needs so that you feel well rested each day. When you are recharged, it is easier to manage difficult emotions, accept help, and make healthy decisions.

4. Be around people who love and support you. Even when the urge can be to isolate and ignore others, try to make time for family and friends. Let those closest to you help you through your grief by telling them exactly what you need from them. If you feel like this isn't helping in the way you need it, seek out a professional to speak to as well.

Unfortunately, grief doesn't follow a specific timeline or playbook. Everyone's grief journey looks and feels different. However, by taking steps every day to take care of yourself and cope with the grief as you are experiencing it in that moment, you will recognize that over time you grow more accustomed and more equipped to manage it.

Different colors mean different things to different people, and we all have lots of different thoughts, feelings, and perspectives. Expressing our thoughts and feelings can make us feel better, especially when we are living with grief. Putting our feelings into words can be difficult because we can experience many feelings at once and they can change rapidly. One way to meaningfully express our feelings is by comparing them to something else.

Here is an overview of an activity that can be a useful tool when navigating grief and/or when supporting others in their journey-

1. You will need something to write with and a piece of paper.

a.     First, think of a color and write it down, for example- gray

b.     Next, write what that color reminds you of. Try to come up with at least 2-3 three things that are that color, for example for gray, I could pick a cat’s fur, the road home, or rain on the roof.

c.     Now, pick one of those things and think of an adjective or feeling to describe it, for example- if I pick rain on the roof, I might choose calm because that’s how I feel when I hear it.

d.     Lastly, we are going to put it all together, in the following format: My (color) is (adjective or feeling) like (thing)- example: My gray is calm like rain on the roof.

The beautiful thing about colors and feelings is that they aren’t right or wrong, they just are. One person’s gray could be cold, while another person’s could be cozy. Grief is such an individualized experience, this activity can grant us a brief and important window into the grieving person's world.

TLDR take aways

Grief is an often intense emotion that all people feel when they lose someone or something that was important to them. Here are some tips for coping:

1. Focus on the good times and ground in gratitude as much as possible rather than succumbing to pain.

2. Make healthy decisions that fuel your body. This includes nutrition, hydration, movement, sleep, and self-care.

3. Be around people who love and support you. This includes seeking professional support when needed.

4. Try to color activity as a way to put words to the grief, this activity can be powerful for any age or circumstance.

Be kind to your mind, Brainiacs- even Serabellum Superstars need brain breaks.