Coping with grief amid the Corona Virus pandemic

By Irene Migwi -

Did you recently lose a loved one to the daunting Corona Virus pandemic? Maybe you are coping with grief from losing someone suddenly and unexpectedly. The thing with sudden and unforeseen loss is that it leaves you with strong feelings of guilt or unfinished business with the person who passed away. You can’t help but wish that if only you had more time, you would have made things right with them or you would have told them how much you love them. But you can’t. 

 



 

Instead, you feel as if your reality has been shattered and the future suddenly seems very dim and miserable. This is perhaps the darkest moment of your life and you do not know what to do. You have never been here before. It is a cold, depressing, and heartbreaking path that life is forcing you to take. I know exactly how you feel. 

 

My experience with grief

The sudden loss of my dad back in 2017 left my world turned upside down. Life suddenly lost its taste and my future seemed like a distant gloomy idea that had lost all meaning. My mind just wanted to remain in that one moment in time when I held my dad’s hand as he was lying on that hospital bed. I wished I could create a bubble and remain in that final moment with him forever. But life kept going on, the sun kept rising, and people eventually moved on from his death. But I didn’t.  

 


 I just couldn’t get myself to overcome the loss. I had never lost anyone before and death was only an idea to me in the past. But now, someone I knew and loved was gone forever. He fell sick on Sunday evening and by Monday evening, he was gone. Someone who was always healthy, jovial, and strong, was gone just like that. I had never seen my dad in a hospital bed. He was always healthy and somehow I was naïve and innocent enough to think my daddy would live forever. But he didn’t. It crushed me. 

Yet somehow, I pulled through eventually. Almost 2 years later. I overcame the loss of my dad and I accepted that he was really gone and never coming back. I learnt to live a new life without him, slowly. Eventually, I was able to find peace again, to laugh again, to dream again, to remember him without breaking down, to miss him without feeling a terrible ache in my chest. AND IF I COULD DO IT, SO CAN YOU. 

 

Helpful tips on how to cope with grief

Some of you can relate to how I felt when my dad passed away suddenly. Many have lost loved ones to this Corona Virus pandemic and maybe you are one of those struggling to cope with the loss. I want to give you a few tips that helped me cope with sudden loss of a loved one. These tips were really helpful to me and I believe they will help ease your pain. 

 

Talk about your pain

Talking about how you are struggling to deal with what happened is the first step towards healing. Find someone you can trust and open up to them. I really recommend that you open up to someone who is caring, thoughtful, and sensitive towards your needs. There are people who may not understand what you are feeling and may give insensitive remarks that could affect you negatively. Talk to people that genuinely care about you. 

 

 



Don’t hold the pain in. Don’t try to hide the pain. It will only eat away at you. Open up. Cry if you have to. Even if you are a 40 year old man, I encourage you to cry. There is no shame in grieving the loss of a loved one. The more you talk about the incidence, the more your mind learns to slowly accept the reality that the loved one is gone. And one day, you will wake up and you will have accepted that they are not coming back and you will shift your focus back to your life and your future. 

 

Pray

One thing that really worked for me while I was grieving my dad was prayer. I don’t mean fervent zealous prayer; I barely had the will to live so I did not have the energy for vehement passionate prayer. My prayer was more like a whisper to God. I told God I was so tired and in emotional pain and I didn’t know how to go on. I was honest and direct with God about how I felt. 

 

 


Every day I asked for strength to go on. I asked God to heal me, and give me a new purpose in life. Somehow, I found myself listening to God’s word from preachers like Pst. Stephen Furtick and every day I was a little bit comforted. The point is, I asked God to help me through my grief, to help me carry the heavy burden, and to heal me. 

And one day, I suddenly caught myself laughing at someone’s joke. I was shocked that I was laughing. I was shocked that I was happy. I don’t know when exactly happiness and joy came back into my life, but they did. I gave my pain to God and He healed me. And He can heal you too. Pray to God everyday through your pain. Tell God how you feel, cast your burdens unto Him. And hopefully, one day, you will catch yourself laughing too. 

 

Talk to a professional

Perhaps you do not have anyone close to talk to about your pain. This does not mean that you are helpless or defenseless. You can talk to a counselor or life coach who understands what you are going through. Talking with a professional will help you come to terms with your reality. They will provide a safe space for you where you can open up, be vulnerable, and ask the difficult questions.

 

 

 


 

A professional life coach or counselor will also help you maintain a positive attitude towards life despite all the things you have gone through. They will also help you cope with grief from losing a loved one to the Corona Virus pandemic by giving you tips on how to shift your focus back to your life and your future.

 

Talk to a professional life coach today

Are you willing to try and do all that you can to cope with your grief from losing a loved one suddenly? Here at Coaching with Wangari Migwi, we offer grief counseling services to people struggling with loss. You do not have to struggle with your pain on your own anymore. Let me help you overcome your grief day by day, bit by bit. 

In case you know someone struggling with grief that could really use some encouragement, share this blog with them and have get in touch with us. It is possible to live life again after loss. Call us today and let us begin the journey towards healing today. 

 

 


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