Grief is the conflicting group of human emotions caused by an end to or change in a familiar pattern of behavior.
In the last year, Phil and I got engaged, moved me to Washington, bought a house in Idaho, moved to Idaho, got married and changed jobs. I never thought any of those things would cause me grief. However, like the definition states, grief can be caused by any change in the familiar. Everything about my life is completely different than it was just 9 months ago and even though I wouldn’t change any of it, the past few months have found me working through the process described in The Grief Recovery Handbook to try and understand and complete the emotions surrounding these major life events.
This book provides the tools to work through any major loss in life ranging from loss of friendships due to a move to the death of a spouse. The hardest thing about any loss is the things we never got to say or the experiences we never got to share with that person or people. It is the dreams unrealized, the future plans that will now never happen. The Grief Recovery process aims to help grievers recognize and acknowledge those lost dreams and unsaid emotions so that they can start to move forward.
In my case, I couldn’t stop thinking about everything I left behind in California. I couldn’t be happier to be married to Phil, but I wanted us to still be with our old friends. However, our choices led us to where we are now and I had to start enjoying our new life together instead of spending everyday crying about what used to be. The Grief Recovery Handbook helped me come to terms with the fact that my time in California was both amazing and really hard at times and that ultimately that season of my life has come to an end and a new season is ahead of me.
I would recommend this book to literally everyone. Even if you haven’t experienced a major loss in life, you will. Loss is a part of life and no one is ever ready for the losses they face. However, The Grief Recovery Handbook can help you get back to living your life again, even if it looks different than it did before.