When we suffer loss, be it losing a loved one, loss of employment, or another matter, it can dampen our spirits. You might agree that we all need a lending hand to support us and cheer us up. When your loved ones lose someone they know, how can you express sympathy to them?
Show Up and Step Up
Grieving ones will tell you they might not remember all they had during the first days of their loss, but they remember continued support. Therefore, even if you do not know what to say, be there to help. After everyone has gone on with their lives, our loved ones might feel lonely as they continue to weep for their loss.
Keep showing up and stepping up in helping them meet their daily needs. Do they need their house cleaned? Do they need to buy groceries? Does something in their home need to be fixed? It is easy to say, ‘Call me if you need anything,’ but more likely, the mourning person will not call you or even remember to do so. Therefore, a way to ease their pain is to continue helping, even in areas they seem to have overlooked or have forgotten to ask for help.
Lend a Listening Ear
Many people feel uncomfortable when a mourning person repeatedly talks of their loss. However, talking about the person they have lost is a way to ease their distress and start the healing process. Therefore, when your loved one starts and keeps repeating stories of their lost one, try not to hightail it out the door. Sit and really listen to what they have to say. That is all they might need. Be the shoulder they can cry on and the comfort they need. Keep showing up to listen. Let your loved ones unburden their pain. In time you will know what to say or how to comfort them.
Send Flowers
Flowers are one excellent way to cheer us up. Your loved one might appreciate the scent and bright colors of flowers. Which are the best sympathy flowers? Try to avoid colors that remind them of the funeral.
Share Memories
When the time is right, go through your loved ones’ album of pictures of the person they have lost. Did you know the person they lost well? Share funny and happy memories of what happened on different occasions; bring the person to live in your memories. Try not to shy away from using the person’s name, thinking that you might evoke sad memories.
Encouraging Sympathy Cards or letters
Sometimes we do not know what to say when visiting our loved ones. However, we can take the time to write to them and express our empathy and sympathy. Written words go a long way to ease sorrow. Grieving ones can attest that they have read and reread sympathy cards and letters from friends through their mourning period, which gave them strength. So, take the time to think about encouraging words you can jot down. It does not have to be a lengthy letter.
Conclusion
Sometimes it’s not easy to be there for our loved ones. However, whatever way you reach out, be sincere, empathetic, letting them know that they have someone who cares about them.
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