Grief and bereavement aren’t light-hearted topics. Grief is a reaction to any form of loss and bereavement refers to the process of recovering from the death of a loved one. Both encompass a wide range of emotions such as fear, anger and deep, deep sadness.

The process of adapting to a loss can dramatically change from person to person, depending on his or her background, beliefs, relationship to the person who’s passed, and other factors.

Common symptoms of grief can be physical, emotional or social.

A few common symptoms in these categories are:

Physical

• Crying
• Headaches
• Loss of appetite
• Difficulty sleeping
• Weakness
• Fatigue

Emotional

• Feelings of sadness and yearning
• Feelings of worry or anger
• Feelings of frustration or guilt

Social

• Feeling detached from others
• Self-isolation from social contact
• Behaving in ways that are not normal for you

Every grieving experience is different. A person may be able to continue their day-to-day routine after one loss, yet not be able to get out of bed after the loss of someone else. Whatever your personal symptoms are, grief and bereavement counseling have been proven to help.