Helping Children With Grief

Teenagers and children express their grief in several different ways. While some may express sadness and verbalize their emotions like most adults, some may instead show occasional pain for short periods. Depending on their ages, children may also complain of physical discomforts, such as headaches or stomach aches, or they may be experiencing challenges in activities that once gave them joy and comfort, such as school or sports. 

Be Honest

The National Alliance for Children's Grief encourages discussing the tragic event of death with your child in a simple, direct, and age-appropriate manner. For example, Cancer.net states that infants under the age of two do not understand the concept of death but understand that there is a separation involved between them and their deceased loved one. School-age children (ages 6 to 12) realize that death is a final state; they understand that death happens to everyone and can't be avoided and may experience guilt, shame, and anxiety about their own death. Be honest and share clear, accurate information about what happened. Children need to hear the truth from someone they love and trust to handle their grief appropriately. 

 

Encourage Memories

Kids Health recommends that in the days and weeks immediately following the loss of a loved one, encourage your child to draw pictures or write down stories of their loved one and share them with family members. Your child can even build a scrapbook or plant a flower representing the person you have lost. Avoiding talking about the person who died is healthy for children or adults; instead, recognizing that sharing happy memories can help heal grief. 

 

Discuss The Afterlife

The idea of an afterlife, or that their loved one is in a better place, can be helpful and comforting to a grieving child, says the Child Mind Institute. If you have religious beliefs about the afterlife, this is the time to share them with your child. However, suppose you don't consider yourself religious or belong to a particular denomination. In that case, you can still comfort your child with the idea that a person continues to live on in our hearts, in our memories, and in the memories of others. 

 

By all outward appearances, the grief of a child may seem to come and go, and verbal cues of sadness may be rare. All of these reactions at every stage of life are completely normal, and you will be there for them and give them unconditional support in the way that best alleviates their pain.

 

When you need extra help with managing your grief and your children's grief, you have friends at Trinity Memorial Gardens that understand the deep sorrow you are feeling. Trinity Memorial Gardens is a picturesque facility that combines a funeral home, chapel, crematory, and a cemetery. We are proud to be independently owned and operated, which gives us a better opportunity to provide a more personal and compassionate service for our families. The caring staff at Trinity Memorial Gardens is here to assist you with arrangements and provide pre-planning information for all walks of faith. 

 

We invite you to discover what has made Trinity Memorial Gardens Funeral Home and Cemetery the ultimate provider of creating healing experiences in the community. Visit our website today to find out more information about how we can honor your loved ones' memory in the way they deserve. 

 

---

Sources

https://childmind.org/article/helping-children-deal-grief/

https://childrengrieve.org/resources/10-ways-to-help-a-grieving-child

https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/death.html

https://www.cancer.net/coping-with-cancer/managing-emotions/grief-and-loss/helping-grieving-children-and-teenagers