Grief and loss are universal human experiences. They affect all of us at some point in our lives, yet it remains isolating and a taboo topic. My personal experiences of grief have at times left me feeling alone, confused and hopeless – and I’m not the only one.  

The 2022 Bereavement Commission found that 28% of respondents bereaved within 5 years had no support from family, and 46% had no support from friends. Worryingly, an American Journal of Psychiatry report found bereaved people to be at “excess risk of suicidal ideation”, and this risk is increased by loneliness and social isolation.  

So what can we do about this taboo? 

National Grief Awareness Week takes place 2-8 December annually, run by charity The Good Grief Trust. Events run throughout the week across the country and online, aimed at raising awareness of grief and the effects of bereavement, an essential step in reducing the stigma and isolation. This year’s theme was “Shine a Light” on people, places, and projects – so I’m extending that light to look at the support and resources available at UEA and our local area. 

UEA Wellbeing Services offer a loss and grief support workshop, in which students “learn about the theories of grief,” and “ways of managing their experiences.” They also run an in-person complex bereavement support group, and provide access to a variety of wellbeing workshops, free of charge, via online platform Togetherall. More information can be found on the Wellbeing page on MyUEA, from Student Services, or ask your advisor. There is a bereavement page in the Student Services Hub on Blackboard, with information on grief, workshop links, crisis support, and helpful signposting to charities and organisations for specific or complex experiences like suicide bereavement, parental loss, miscarriage and child loss, and religious and faith support. 

Grief can be overwhelming, and it can be scary to reach out for help. There is no singular experience of grief, and no wrong way to feel your loss, so having a wide range of resources, workshops and charities to explore if and when you need them, can help lessen the confusion.  

While it’s great to have this support and information available at UEA, sometimes we might want or need to keep grief separate or give ourselves a space in our lives just to work through it. Outside of university, there are multiple bereavement charities in Norwich, like Norfolk Grief Tending (norfolkgrieftending.com), national charity Cruse (norwich@cruse.org.uk), and local branch of The Big C based at the Norfolk & Norwich University Hospital. To find organisations local to you, whether in Norfolk or further afield, The Good Grief Trust provide a UK map of services, available online at thegoodgrieftrust.org/find-support. 

In the spirit of the ‘Shine a Light’ campaign, I’d like to spotlight somewhere that has been significant in my grief journey. Just up the road from the UEA campus, tucked away beside the A47, is Greenacres Memorial Park, Colney. This 26-acre woodland park is a burial place, but also a living memorial, and is open daily to visitors: to visit loved ones, to join their regular bereavement café or seasonal events, or simply to spend time in contemplation in a beautiful, natural landscape.  

For me, the ability to experience and process some of the rawest emotions of grief is made that bit easier in the peace of the woods. The cycles of seasonal change help remind me through the difficult moments that, like the trees shed leaves and bark for new growth, there will be new joys for me out of the pain of grief. 

The woodland trees are bare for winter, and carrying grief into this time of year can feel the same – stripped and exposed. It can be really tough, especially in the festive season, with expectations and celebrations looming all around, and all you want to do is hide away from the world. It can feel like there’s no place for grief, or for the person you’re grieving, but I hope that things like National Grief Awareness Week, and perhaps this article too, can be a reminder to take the help that’s out there, to reach out to people and make time to remember.  

We can’t take away all the feelings and pain of a loss, but if we can open up the conversation and combat the isolation, we can make the burden that bit easier to carry. 

Image Credit: Pexels