The Artists’
Grief Deck

The musing below helps me let go. Whenever we paint our nails, we are more aware of the bones of the fingers. Take those moments with your body. The tick marks of my life that used to hold milestones...

When you've lost someone, it can be very hard to ground yourself and accept that they're really gone. While it's absolutely fine to cry over someone you've lost, overdoing it isn't healthy. A great w...

Exercise is an important component to staying healthy and is a natural mood-elevator. What are your favorite physical activities? How could you incorporate more movement into your daily life? Can you...

Food is a powerful coping mechanism for grief. We gather around tables for comforting meals, or deliver casseroles to grieving loved ones. In grief, it's tempting to indulge in sugary, fatty foods for...

Did I become a butterfly when I dreamed, or did the butterfly become me when it dreamed? In any case, butterflies are not confused, and even if they are, they are a small being, and so am I....

When someone dies, you can thank them for their life. Walk around the house, inside or outside. Find something that makes you think about the person who died. Really think about that person. Thank the...

Upul said, "Betty be a tunnel" Betty be a tunnel the dread the love the breath the loss You are a tunnel let life go through...

"It takes 1,000 people for one person to grieve." Martín Prechtel Your village exists to witness this time. Your village existed from the moment you came here. Look around you. We will carry your gri...

In the early days of grieving, some depressive symptoms are certainly present and normal. However, going forward, significant depression, exhibited in such ways as an inability to experience pleasure,...

The process of grieving is a natural one. Whenever I feel out of control of my life and my circumstances, I remember that there’s entire natural world out there that keeps moving without me. To remi...

Can you be happy at the crossroads of grief? Is it allowed? Do you feel guilty for being happy sometimes? Place your bare feet flat on Mother Earth, your hands on your heart and close your eyes. Inhal...

Begin by closing your eyes and think about the sun's daily journey (or moon if you prefer). Picture the colors and feelings of morning, midday, and evening. As you imagine the sun rising then setting,...

Release. Letting go is a natural process of nature. The leaves of trees fall as they turn into gold and drift lighter and lighter, drifting in the wind. Try to be like that. Feel yourself floating as...

Rituals symbolically connect us to the larger world and each other and those who have come before us. There is some evidence the actions in rituals may actually release endorphins, which can ease anxi...

Take a Cue From Poetry What is your favorite poem? Put it in your own words. In the original poem below, I substitute the word hope for grief from the first line of Emily Dickinson’s poem “‘Hope...

Find a space you feel the most comfort in, whether it’s alone or with a loved one. Lie down on your back, close your eyes, and slowly breathe in and out, four times each. Focus on memory. Take yours...

close your eyes and look out the window of your mind. tell me, how fares the sky? is it dull or bright? heavy or light? be there sun or rain or fog or? — no matter what you find, just brea...

What you've lost is no longer with you, but your memories of it are. Hold them inside of you and keep them alive. Keep yourself alive. Breathe. Hold that breath in, let it go. In, and out, and in agai...

Helping others will help yourself.

Focusing on others can be a great way to enable healing.

Consider doing random acts of kindness: donating supplies to an animal shelter, delivering flowers to a nursing home...