Making Positive Life Changes While Grieving

The loss of someone close affects everyone differently, but one constant is a need to process grief. Being aware of your needs and how to meet them, whether personally or among close friends and family, can help you make sure the choices you're making will benefit you even after you've moved on. Today, Ellie's Way offers some tips and resources to help you navigate this difficult time.

Supporting Each Other and Yourselves

Recognize that you're likely not the only one struggling with the recent death. The people closest to you and the deceased probably feel similar to you, and being able to lean on each other is important to healthy grieving. Your support system is not just there to commiserate; grieving friends and family can help complete difficult life tasks for each other such as cooking for the widow or widower, setting appointments the deceased usually did for their family, or helping to manage funeral arrangements.

There's plenty you can do for yourself, as well. It's vital to process your feelings, but dwelling on them for too long can lead to a lack of control in other aspects of your life. Try to stay active and productive during this time. A distraction is often useful for briefly improving your mood and letting you fulfill your obligations while processing your grief.

Securing Their Legacy With a Nonprofit

If you have the proper means and connections, you might consider setting up an organization to effect positive change in your loved one's memory. By filing as a nonprofit corporation, public funding and grants are more available to you, allowing you to focus on supporting a cause that was important to your departed relative rather than fundraising to get the project off the ground.

Nonprofits need a set of bylaws to help drive and govern how their members operate. Make sure these specifications keep all employees and volunteers accountable while serving the cause your loved one stood for. If you need ideas for your nonprofit's mission, consider the deceased's hobbies and special interests, medical advancements that could have prolonged their lives, or specific social changes they would have liked to see.

You should also design some business cards to go along with your new nonprofit. If you aren’t sure where to start, this may be a solution, allowing you to take advantage of free templates and customize them to suit your needs. This is a great way to provide others with a tangible reminder of your nonprofit’s existence and mission.

Reassessing Your Career

Sudden shifts like a close relative's death often put other aspects of your life in perspective. As you come to terms with what's most important and who your true support system consists of, you may end up wanting to change anything from where you live and who you spend time with to what you do for a living. Shaking things up and finding a new job or a completely different field are common moves to make when facing your own mortality.

A resume is often your first impression to a potential new employer. Though the wake of your recent loss may still be affecting you, it's important to put a sufficient amount of time and effort into crafting a convincing and impressive CV. Online resume builders and templates can be found fairly easily, leaving some time and mental capacity to address your grief.

The loss of a loved one is often a devastating shake-up to daily life, one that you may not be able to navigate on your own. Helping (and accepting help from) your family, changing aspects of your life that you're unsatisfied with, and continuing your loved one's memory with a nonprofit or other meaningful memorial gestures are all great ways to grieve healthily.

Ellie's Way is here to provide help and support for those who are grieving. If you have any questions or you’d like to help, please let us know!

Contributed to Ellie's Way by Camille Johnson
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