Grief + Bereavement

Understanding, Coping + Finding Support

Understanding grief can help make sense of difficult emotions and reactions that may feel confusing or frightening.

For many people, it involves adapting to life after loss while finding ways to maintain meaning, connection, and hope.

The guides below explore different aspects of grief and bereavement, from understanding common reactions and making sense of what is happening, to supporting someone who is grieving and finding appropriate support.

Understanding Grief

Explore what grief is, what it may feel like, and the different ways people respond to loss.

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Making Sense of Grief

Learn about grief models and frameworks that help explain how people adapt after bereavement.

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Supporting Someone Who is Grieving

Guidance on how to support a person experiencing grief with compassion and understanding.

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When Grief Feels Overwhelming

Understand when grief becomes difficult to manage and when additional help may be needed.

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Grief Symptoms

Explore emotional, physical, cognitive, and behavioural responses that can occur during grief.

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Finding Support

Information about accessing support, counselling, and resources during bereavement.

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Clinically informed content by Dr Erin Hope Thompson and our team of clinical psychologists

This guide has been developed by Dr Erin Hope Thompson alongside our team of clinical psychologists, bringing together clinical knowledge, evidence-based approaches, and practical understanding of grief and bereavement. Our aim is to provide clear, compassionate information to help people better understand grief, loss, and the process of adapting after bereavement.

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There is no single way to experience grief.

Some people move through periods of intense sadness, longing, anger, guilt, or confusion, while others may feel numb, disconnected, or overwhelmed. Grief can change over time, and the way it unfolds is influenced by the nature of the loss, our relationships, previous experiences, and the support available to us.

At The Loss Foundation, we recognise that grief is not a simple process with predictable stages or a timeline to follow.

Our approach is informed by contemporary psychological understanding of grief, recognising it as a personal, evolving experience rather than something that can be reduced to a fixed set of stages.

In this short video, Dr Kirsten V Smith explores the widely misunderstood “five stages of grief” and explains why grief is often far more complex, individual, and non-linear than stage-based models suggest.

Grief is a natural response to loss.

It can affect how we think, feel, behave, and relate to the world around us. While bereavement is often associated with the death of someone important to us, grief can involve many different types of loss, including changes in relationships, identity, health, hopes, or the future we expected.