The Artists’
Grief Deck
How-to
Welcome to the Artists’ Grief Deck. There is no correct way to use these cards, but we have these suggestions:
- Set aside time for yourself to go through them
- Find or make a space for yourself
- Look closely at the images
- Be open to the feelings that arise
Connecting Through Memories
Even though your loved one is no longer physically present, they will always live in your memories. Take a moment to re-connect with your loved one through a few favorite memories. Review photos or vi...
Click to Continue
Naming Your Feelings
Think about the feelings inside you that bubble up. Try to give them each their own name. How many feelings can you name? Once you name them, can you let them go?...
Click to Continue
Food, Grief and Healing
Food is a powerful coping mechanism for grief. We gather around tables for comforting meals, or deliver casseroles to grieving loved ones. In grief, it's tempting to indulge in sugary, fatty foods for...
Click to Continue
Blossoms from the Mourning/ Morning Series
The solace of nature welcomes you....
Click to Continue
The Weight of Grief
Handling grief can feel like an immense weight is on our shoulders. A weight that leaves no room to breathe and is vast and lonely. It's important to remember that there will be moments when the weigh...
Click to Continue
Celebrate Signs of Healing
Healing is natural in a healthy grief process. Being able to enjoy time alone, laughing at a joke or funny movie, planning pleasant activities for the future, having a renewed sense of energy and purp...
Click to Continue
The Musing Below Helps Me Let Go
The musing below helps me let go. Whenever we paint our nails, we are more aware of the bones of the fingers. Take those moments with your body. The tick marks of my life that used to hold milestones...
Click to Continue
Exercising Your Grief
Exercise is an important component to staying healthy and is a natural mood-elevator. What are your favorite physical activities? How could you incorporate more movement into your daily life? Can you...
Click to Continue
Disappearing Place
Remember a vanished place of personal importance. Describe it, by writing or speaking of it....
Click to Continue
Writing to Cope
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...
Click to Continue
Co-existing Feelings
Allow yourself space to feel many, sometimes seemingly conflicting, things at once. We rarely feel only one emotion at a time. Sadness, fear, anger, hope, relief, joy… these feelings can all co-exis...
Click to Continue
Revitalizing Water Ritual
You need: Water, a glass, calm energy, a moment of your time. Take a drinking vessel and fill it with water. Hold the vessel in your hands and concentrate. Say the names of your loved ones, spirit gui...
Click to Continue
Create and Reflect
Find an old picture of a memory with a person that has died. Use any materials you have (pencil, paints, clay, etc) to recreate this moment with this person. Revisit this memory by sitting still and l...
Click to Continue
The Power of Playlists
Music has the ability to help us feel our emotions without much thought or effort. It meets us where we are. Make a playlist of comforting, familiar songs. If the list is too overwhelming, focus on on...
Click to Continue
What To Do When You’re Angry
Scribble with crayons on multiple newspaper sheets. Crumple up each newspaper sheet into a ball. Find a dartboard or target outside to throw each of these balls at and let your physical energy transfe...
Click to Continue
Tell Your Story
When I am in my car alone, sometimes I’ll talk and explain life events that have happened to me like I’m being interviewed on a news channel or a talk show. I think about speaking it to the masses...
Click to Continue
Dealing With Past Wrongs and Resentments
Anger, resentment and unforgiveness are heavy burdens to carry and, if not dealt with, can sabotage your grief journey. Writing a letter to the one who has wronged you can be incredibly healing. Take...
Click to Continue
Stop
Go outside, find a quiet spot to be still…and stop. Stop and observe the small details we are ignorant to as we struggle through the day. Sit upon a rock and watch the patterns the birds paint in th...
Click to Continue
The Bricklayer’s Dream
What do we do simply for beauty or love or joy? What do we do to enrich others? We spend so much of our lives shuttling ourselves from home to work and back again, sometimes losing sight of our humani...
Click to Continue