If you have been widowed recently, these words may be familiar
Shock: I was numb. Everyone thought I was so strong but I was really in a fog.
Health Problems: “The flu just keeps hanging on”
Social Isolation: “The phone never rings anymore. I feel like a fifth wheel”
Confusion: “At the time, I thought I knew what I was signing”
Nervousness: “I can’t seem to concentrate anymore.”
Loss: “I feel like a big part of me is gone”
Withdrawal: “I no longer do things we used to do or even go places I used to go by myself”
Children: “My married children don’t know what to do with me. The youngest one, still at home, is clinging to me and having problems at school”
Anger: “Why did this happen?”
Resentment: “He didn’t prepare me to cope with this”
Memories: “A certain song on the radio, a special anniversary and I start crying”
Fear: “I don’t go out at night anymore”
Jealousy: “I look at an old man and think why is he still here when my husband who was so much more valuable to this world is gone?”
Apathy: “Now that I have the time, I don’t want to”
Sleeping Problems: “Suddenly, I wake up at 2:00 a.m. with my heart pounding so hard that I’m frightened”
Eating Problems: “I feel like there is a huge lump in my throat. I have lost twenty pounds and my clothes just hang on me”
Coping: “She did all the cooking and grocery shopping”
Pressure: “Everybody is telling me to do different things”
Depression: “Sometimes I wish I had been buried with him. All I do is cry”
Feeling of unreality: “This is all a bad dream”
Financial Worries: “I have no idea how I stand financially. I am still waiting for social security to send a check”