The Artists’
Grief Deck

I feel worried about… I feel happy when… I have regrets about… I feel guilty for… I feel safest when… I am encouraged by…...

Time is one thing we can never, ever get back. Having a chronic illness caused me to lose the experience of having a normal life by any stretch of the imagination from 2012-2016 and our current pandem...

The work that grief demands ought to be done every day. That work demands attention and love. The only way to navigate the world as we carry the weight of grief is to hold it with love. That’s also...

Let's begin by tackling one thing at one time. 1) Take a sheet of paper, take any color (smell it as it colors your fingers). Without thinking twice draw anything and whatever comes to mind. No judgem...

In grief, time feels like the enemy. Making music helped me find a better relationship with time when feeling difficult emotions. Even if you have not played in a long time, there is no bad time to ge...

Create and collaborate. Use an item belonging to your loved one to create something new. T-shirts may become a quilt or a pillow. Photos and letters may become a collage. You might listen to their fav...

To get through my sadness I feel better when I take three deep breaths and calm down. I imagine I’m breathing my emotions into a balloon and then I let it go. The cat is thoughtful and petting it ma...

Common misconceptions of grief assert that the grief journey is universal, linear, and predictable. However, grief is not a monolithic experience; instead, grief is unique to the individual. While oth...

Interplaying with the grief. Put on a piece of music (3-5 min long instrumental works great) and begin to move. Taking care of your body and listening - Does it need to move gently with a swaying moti...

It can be very overwhelming, watching and living. Think of the absoluteness of your fingers the sturdiness of arbors. To look past the emptiness right in front of your eyes. To stare at something beau...

My dad passed away a year before Covid hit and what made that time of isolation even harder was that I was also going through a really tough time dealing with his passing. As I was trying to get motiv...

Recall moments of tenderness, both human and otherwise: the touch of hand on shoulder, the needed hug, a note or message, the way that your cats curl together, the delicate meeting of boulders in the...

The process of grieving is a natural one. Whenever I feel out of control of my life and my circumstances, I remember that there’s entire natural world out there that keeps moving without me. To remi...

We often ‘bottle’ up our emotions because they are just too much to deal with. We might cork them up and throw them out into the ocean hoping they will leave us forever. But without paying attenti...

I grieve not only for the losses of the present but also for what could have been. If I stay too long in my head imagining the things I won't ever have, I can lose myself in a spiral downward. When I...

Finish these thoughts: Three people who understand my grief are…. In order to heal, I need…… When I’m alone……. I hope……… I’m letting go of…… I’m looking forward to……. I f...

Some waves are huge! Others, barely a ripple. [breathe] Close your eyes. Where in your body do you feel it? Watch a sensation with gentle curiosity. [breathe] Let it build... peak… subside… … Re...

When I am going through a difficult phase I tend to bottle everything up. I used to think it was normal to do this and that it was a more efficient way of dealing with my feelings. Through doing this...

Often when we go through a major change in our lives, we unknowingly mourn the loss of that version of ourselves. This death of a self can also occur through good change, and we get confused about why...