Journaling Through Grief

Author: Alyice Edrich

There is no right or wrong way of keeping a grief journal. But there is a method to journaling that you must adhere to if you’re ever going to work your way through the grief until you’re strong enough to come out on the other side.

If you use your grief journal, without inhibitions, you’ll find that each day brings you closer to healing and one day, the hurt won’t seem as strong as it once was. But if you use your grief journal, with the intent of limiting your thoughts, for fear someone is going to read your journal and call you crazy, then the grief will linger longer and healing will continue to be a long way off.

Grief journals aren’t meant to take you step-by-step through your grief, as one would do with a structured course. But grief journals are meant to be a therapeutic way to help you:

take a deep look inside your soul;
release tension and anxiety;
find relief from repressed thoughts that might be causing anger, resentment, or pain;
deal with bad memories related to the deceased;
relive good memories related to the deceased;
remember important aspects of the deceased’s character;
say things to the one you lost that you never had the chance to say; and
release emotions you’d otherwise bottle up and avoid.

Every grief journal comes complete with hundreds of blank pages waiting for your thoughts, so don’t be shy about spilling your guts. The more open you up about your feelings, the easier it will be for you to work through your grief.

And remember, no one is going to read your grief journal unless you want them to, and if you’re really worried about someone reading your thoughts, you can lock your grief journal up, or burn the pages once you’re done getting all your thoughts on paper.