Aging and Coping With Grief

Aging and coping with grief

Aging and Coping with Grief Grief is an understandable response to any loss, yet for older adults grieving can be particularly taxing as they often suffer multiple losses at once and often lack resources or energy to cope. Therefore, it’s essential that when faced with loss it is recognized that emotions arise and taken steps taken care of themselves during this difficult period.

Elisabeth Kubler-Ross popularized seven stages of grief: denial and isolation, anger, bargaining depression acceptance. When grieving significant losses in their lives, individuals often become stuck at one or more of these stages and may develop symptoms of depression if their mental health has ever been an issue in the past. This is especially likely if their individual has undiagnosed health conditions such as asthma.

Grief can cause shock or numbness; crying frequently; lacking motivation or purpose; and experiencing lack of motivation or purpose. It’s important to remember these are normal reactions, and will get better over time, particularly if one seeks support from trusted friends, family members, counselors or religious leaders.

Loss can have a lasting effect on our lives and, at times, may make them question whether they’re truly experiencing grief; society often tells those grieving that their grief will just pass and to “move on”, when in truth our connections to those we lose will always remain strong and close by telling them to “get over it”. But it is essential for individuals experiencing loss to remember that it won’t disappear overnight; indeed the memories associated with them will always remain with them.