The Early Phases of Grief: the First Days and Weeks
“Early Phases of Grief: The First Days and Weeks” by Tim Heller, MSW/LCSW When my wife, Sandra, died 4 years ago, I was with her in our home with DCH Hospice. I told my young adult daughters and my wife’s family and then went about notifying extended family that lived away. Having worked in hospice for over 17 years I thought would have a pretty good handle on this process. I had myself convinced I was prepared for her death. After all, we knew it was going to happen for more than 3 years. However, there is something different about the death of a loved one, when it actually occurs. I soon discovered I needed to actually experience this death and the bereavement phases that followed, before I knew what it was really about. This is just one person’s experience into and now through the journey called grief. I would have to say, I still found it difficult at times to actually follow through with the many tasks associated with her death as well as some of the tasks of everyday livin...