What To Do For Grieving Friends
It’s not easy to see someone you love grieving a loss, and it’s even harder to know what to say or do to help them.
In my opinion, we worry too much about offending people with our good intentions. While yes, there are things you want to avoid doing or saying, we’re not actors in a hyper-sensitive Buzzfeed video, and we more than likely know what you mean.
As you may know or have guessed, some of these opinions come from personal experience. Still, some also come from observation and talking to other people who have lost a loved one, and I think that as the human need for love is essential above all else when we’re hurting, these ideas are pretty universal.
What To Do For Grieving Friends
Offer empathy. In other words, be there for the person to listen and talk through what they’re feeling, but don’t try to make it better. It’s our natural tendency to want to fix things but believe me, this can’t be fixed, and the best thing you can do is not try. Just listen willingly. It helps!
It’s okay to repeat yourself. When someone loses someone close to them – a parent, a sibling, a spouse, a best friend – what do you say? You may feel foolish repeating the same “I’m so sorry” repeatedly, but you know what? It’s okay! It doesn’t sound foolish, and they would rather know you care and that you empathize with their pain than think you’re brilliant and have a solution, so just go ahead and say it – again.
Ask how they’re doing. It may be slightly uncomfortable. You know they’re not doing okay even though they’ll probably say they are, but it’s still a good idea to ask because asking shows that you care, and you know what? It helps them be more okay.
Don’t be afraid to dig deeper. If you’re close to the person who’s lost someone, don’t be scared to say, “I know you’re not okay, so how are you really?” So many people are happy to ask the surface questions, breathe a sigh of relief that their duty is done, and move on, but we all need a few people in our lives who really, genuinely care, and if you really care, then go beyond the surface. The honesty of the person you ask will vary because so many of us want to show a good front no matter what, but the message you send is the same. You care for real. And that’s important.
Don’t forget them. Especially during the first year, everything is harder for a person who’s lost a close family. Try to put important events during their year, such as birthdays, down on your calendar so you can send them a card or let them know you’re thinking of them. Some of my sisters’ friends did this for our younger siblings after we lost our mom. She was the main birthday joy-bringer, and they made sure to send cards and such on their birthdays, and it helped brighten their day!
Above all, remember this: it’s not what you say or do that will help, so much as that you said or did something. It helps fill the void – just a little bit – that was created when we lost the person we loved. It tells us that you remember them, too, and that means everything.
These ideas are spot on. I am such a weeper that tears always come to my eyes. Sometimes, those tears and a hug or hand clasp are all I need to do. When I lost my mother, someone said to me, “The hole will always be there.” That comforted me because they were acknowledging the importance of my mother to me, and that she could not be replaced.
So true, it really is the little gestures that are so important. I’m so sorry for your loss!
When my husband was diagnosed with cancer I grieved the potential loss. And a few months later a dear friend whom I’d known since high school (a 40+ year long relationship) passed away. Your post is truly wonderful because all the things you stated are great advice.
Thank you Elizabeth, and I’m so sorry for your loss. {{{hugs}}}
You posted this article exactly at a time when I’ve been wondering what the right or wrong thing to do and say is for my dear neighbors who lost their young mother/wife tragically a few days ago. I decided I would take the risk of possibly doing or saying the wrong thing as opposed to the bigger harm of doing nothing. Listening, crying with them, and not trying to fix anything is truly “helping to fill a void.”
You’re a great friend Andrea!