- Natalie Adams
48 Ways to Cope with Teenage Grief
Finding ways to cope with hard situations is essential. Here's a list of 48 ways you can cope with teen grief.
I've divided this list into three sections:
- General Tips, which you should try to follow daily.
- Grief-Related Tips, which are ways to cope that involve grief.
- Distraction Tips, which are ways to cope by distracting yourself.
Please note: You should not only do distraction tips. Sometimes distracting yourself is good, but you also need to let yourself feel your grief.
General Tips
Make sure you take breaks during your school day.
Try to avoid procrastinating, so when you feel bad you can take time off.
Feel your feelings!! Don’t avoid them!! Ignoring feelings may seem “easier” at the time, but it actually makes things a LOT worse.
Grief-Related Tips
Write your feelings.
Make voice memos of you talking about what you’re going through.
Write a letter to your loved one.
Let yourself cry and be upset. Getting strong emotions out can make you feel a lot better afterwards.
Talk to friends about what you’re going through.
Talk to a trusted adult in your life, such as a school counselor or family member.
Follow accounts on social media that are related to grief or mental health.
Read articles or listen to podcasts online by people who are grieving.
Watch movies or TV shows with a grief storyline. (Doesn’t necessarily have to be nonfiction. A fictional Netflix show, Northern Rescue, is good.)
Watch YouTube videos by people who are grieving.
Read books about grief. (Doesn’t necessarily have to be nonfiction.)
If you’ve previously written something when struggling, read it and remind yourself that, like how you got through that, you can get through this too.
Look online to see celebrities who have gone through grief, and somehow implemented it into their work. Look up their work.
Distraction Tips
Cleaning.
Organize your school things.
Work ahead in school (helps me feel “in control”).
Spend time outside.
Go on a walk with music or with friends.
Exercise.
Listen to music
Do something that makes you happy.
Call or text a friend, even if you don’t talk about grief.
Visit a friend. (From a distance!!)
Go to a public park and have a picnic.
Watch a funny YouTube video.
Make social plans that you can look forward to.
Participate in activities at your school or in your community.
Use your pain to help others. (I do this by sharing my story - and you can too.)
Learn how to cook something new.
Go grocery shopping and plan something you can cook.
Eat something healthy.
Shower and get dressed, if you haven’t already.
Rearrange your work space, or work somewhere else.
Learn another language, and practice it. (I use Duolingo.)
Draw.
Do a DIY craft from Pinterest.
Do a Buzzfeed Quiz.
Make a TikTok. Or watch TikTok.
Play a board or card game with a family member.
Spend time with animals.
Organize your computer bookmarks.
Make a list of things you want for Christmas or your birthday.
Create a list of goals
Write your 2021 New Year's Resolutions (or your resolutions for the rest of 2020).
Fulfil a childhood dream
Written by Natalie Adams, the creator of Teenage Grief Sucks.