What To Do When Someone Close To You Passes Away*

*This is a collaborative post*

There are few things more upsetting in life than losing someone close to you. It’s easy to fall into a spiral of negative thinking where nothing makes sense and the future looks bleak. However, while it might seem tough right now, it’s important to remember that, although it’s a cliche, time really does heal all wounds. Many people before you have overcome the trials and tribulations of losing someone close to them; and so will you. Below, we take a look at some essential actions, which will help you move on and make sure the logistics have been taken care of.

Give Yourself Time

No-one’s expecting you to jump out of bed straight away and resume your life. Indeed, even when that might be the only thing that you want to do, it’s important that you give yourself time to process what’s happened. Take care of yourself, eat well, and do all the things in life that you enjoy doing. It’s not going to be a pretty period of course, but if you keep yourself occupied and well looked after, you’ll find it easier to emerge on the other side as a full person.

Get Together

You’re not the only person who has lost someone that they loved. There’ll be other family members, friends, and colleagues who have lost someone dear to them too. Instead of grieving on your own, get together with these other people, and support each other. It’s much easier to have a sense of moving forward if you’re joining other people to share stories, eat meals, share your feelings, and so on.

Arranging The Funeral

There are a lot of things that need to be taken care of when a person dies (though how much stuff will depend on where and how they departed). One of the most pressing concerns will be the funeral. Of course, you don’t have to organise all of this on your own. There’ll be funeral directors who you can work with to plan a day that’ll be a fitting send-off for your loved one. While it can be difficult to process the reality of arranging a funeral, it’s an important part of the grieving process and will provide you with an opportunity to say goodbye.

Letting People Know

Of course, it’s not just your immediate circle of family or friends that should know about the death. You’ll also have to share the news with other family members and friends, no matter how far-flung or removed from you they may be. They’ll need to know the news and to make plans to attend the funeral. While this can be tough, it’s important not to overthink it: when in doubt, keep things to the point. You can also delegate some of the phone-calling to other close people around you too.

Moving Forward

There’s no way to sugarcoat it: losing someone is tough. But by staying close to your loved ones and taking care of the essentials, you’ll be able to find a way to move forward.

*Contributed by Sam Jones

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