From Permission to Mourn – Chapter 7 – Tom Zuba

In order to heal you must give yourself permission to mourn. You must create a plan that is concrete and doable.

Some suggestions: 1. Journal-journaling has been extremely helpful in my grief journey. At first I journaled every day (sometimes multiple times in a day). It is good to get all of the feelings, emotions, fear, etc. out! 2. Spend time alone in silence- This one is harder for me. I do love my alone time, but I have found it more difficult to be in silence since Richard’s death. 3. Commit to crying – not only did I cry a lot in the beginning, I sobbed! I am so thankful that I gave myself permission to do this and not worry about “appearing strong”! 4. Start a gratitude journal- this can be part of the journal in #1. On days that I don’t journal, I state my gratitude out loud (usually when I’m driving). It changes the course of the day to have a grateful heart. 5. Rebuild your broken body – this is one that I’m working on. I’m trying to recover my physical health. While I’m not unhealthy, I know I need to be more intentional with exercise, drinking water, and making healthy food choices. This has been a tough one for me. But I’m going to keep trying.

Begin where you are today.

Add suggestions that have been helpful to you in your grief journey in the comments.