No matter who has died, you are dealing with overwhelming pain and grief. You don’t know how you will get through the day let alone the rest of your life. Overcoming grief can feel like an impossible task. There’s no quick fix. There’s no solution that fixes the pain for everyone. However, there are some steps you can take to overcome grief one day at a time.

Find and Rely on a Support Team

Some people struggling with grief feel best when they can put their head down and fight through the work day and just live. While it may feel okay to be alone and not think about your loved one, this tends to be unhealthy. A better option is to create and rely on a support team. Family and friends are a good place to start. Sometimes these individuals are not available or are struggling themselves and therefore are unable to provide you with the support you need.

Turn to local churches, your community outreach programs, and even area hospitals that offer grief support groups. Finding just one person you can turn to and just talk to is going to make a difference in the quality of your life.

You Don’t Have to Get Over It

It is a common mistake and many believe that in order to deal with death you need to just get over it. Some people may say that time will heal your pain. That’s not true. You may learn to cope with it, but you don’t have to give up grieving. If you are among the many people who feel guilty being happy, don’t it’s normal. Overcoming grief doesn’t mean getting over the loss but rather getting back to life even if it is a very new way.

Also keep in mind that it’s okay for things to get better. Your incredibly painful emotions will subside somewhat. And, you may not feel as lost or as empty in time. It’s okay for this healing to occur.

Overcoming grief is your own personal journey. The person that died isn’t the one in pain any longer. It’s you, and your loved one would want you to take the step towards healing that you need to take. Reach out to a loved one that you haven’t spoken to. Talk to a spiritual leader. It takes one single step towards healing to help you to make sense of what’s happened.