|  | Family Health | Death Mourning

Signs of Grief and Mourning

Grief is a natural response to loss that can affect every aspect of a person's life. The loss of a loved one, relationship, health, home or job can trigger grief. The symptoms of grief and mourning vary depending on the person and the cause of the grief. However, there are common symptoms that you may experience during your grieving and mourning process. You many not experience all of them; they may not be in any particular order or last a set amount of time.

  1. Physical Symptoms

    • Grief and mourning can trigger physical reactions in the body. Physical responses to grief include stress-related ailments such as headaches, chest pains and nausea. You also may have difficulty sleeping and constantly feel tired and low on energy. You may experience a loss in appetite or, alternatively, binge on comfort foods. You may gain or lose weight as a result of the changes in your eating and the stress.

    Emotional Symptoms

    • Grieving can take an emotional toll and cause you to experience a range of feelings. You may constantly feel sad and cry often. Feeling emotionally numb or apathetic is a common symptom of grief. You also may feel guilt and yearn for the return of the person or thing you lost. Anger and irritability also are common symptoms of grief. You may lash out at others or even the person or thing that is the reason for the grief. Grief can cause you to feel vulnerable and hypersensitive, and things that may not usually bother you may cause extreme reactions. Anxiety and frustration also are normal symptoms of guilt.

    Social

    • Grief and mourning also can affect your social life. You may withdraw from others and find ways to avoid social situations. You may consciously make the decision to avoid others or your isolation may be due to a general lack of initiative or interest in social interactions. Alternatively, grief and mourning can cause you to become more dependent on others. You may fear being alone and seek the love, support and comfort of friends and family more than usual.

    Spiritual

    • Experiencing a loss also may affect you spiritually. You may begin to rely more on your religious beliefs as a source of strength. Alternatively, you may experience doubt and question your beliefs. You may blame a higher power for the loss and your suffering. You may begin to question the purpose of life, death, pain and suffering.

    Behavioral

    • Grief and mourning also can cause you to experience behavioral and mental changes. You may become more forgetful and absent minded. You may frequently find yourself thinking about the loss and may dream about the lost person or thing. You also may find yourself constantly talking about the loss or alternatively avoiding the subject for fear of making yourself or others sad or uncomfortable.

Death Mourning - Related Articles