FollowHow to Help Your Child Deal with Grieving
Losing someone is never an easy thing to deal with for anyone, especially for children. Death brings out all kinds of emotions, along with change and chaos. Children need their parents to help get through this process. Here are some ways on how to help your child deal with grieving.
Be Honest– When it comes to death, always be honest with your child. If you start lying to them about the situation or withhold information about it, they will start feeling mistrust and begin to keep all their own feelings and emotions bottled up inside them. Depending on how old your child is and what their personality is, will determine how much information they can actually process. Start with the absolute basics, find out what they already know and then just go from there.
Use Easy to Understand Language– When helping your child with the grieving process, talk to them in a manner that is easy for them to understand. For instance, telling your kid about the death of their grandmother by saying something like “We’ve lost her,” may have them thinking that she went for a walk and got lost. Instead, you want to use language that is direct, like saying, “I have some sad news. Grandma Nelly has died.” Or for a younger kid, something like “I have some sad news. Grandma Nelly has gone to heaven, so you won’t see her anymore.”
Maintain a Normal Routine– Keeping your normal routine when it comes to school, sports and other activities can help your child feel some sense of normalcy. After a death occurs, kids may wonder how their lives will change or how their lives will be different. This is why it is important for you to assure them that nothing will change and life will go on as normal, for the most part. Many times, things like school and after-school activities can provide your kid with a sort-of break from their grief.
Recall the Happy Moments– If the loss is someone that is a close relative or even a pet, recall happy moments that you have spent with the deceased. This will help the youngster to internalize these happy times and remember how much fun the two of them had together. By doing so, you will help to relieve their grief somewhat and perhaps help them to avoid falling into a depressive state.
