Ripple Effect

"Perhaps the bereaved ought to be isolated in special settlements like lepers" -C. S. Lewis

As I think about grief and its impact, I realize that the emotions of grieving are seen everywhere in our society. I don't mean people wear black and hang out at cemeteries. I mean that the symptoms of grief are present everywhere, and by the percentages, over 50% of the population has experienced a significant loss in the last three years. Think about the emotional symptoms of grief, including mind fog, hollowness in the stomach, irregular heartbeat, lack of energy/fatigue, nausea, sensitivity to noise, or social withdrawal  (A list of common symptoms can be found here).

Bereavement by the numbers (Maryville University, 2022).

The death of a loved one has ripple effects.

The ripple effect of those who are grieving extends throughout society. Each griever is caught up in an inward pain not immediately apparent to others, yet it colors each interaction with everyone they touch. So my pain triggers your pain, and your pain triggers the neighbor's pain until the whole neighborhood is aching.

We are like pool balls on a pool table where the pool stick crashes into the first ball, creating the event, but it doesn't stop there. The first ball crashes into the next and the next until all the balls are bouncing around. The importance of doing grief work is that each person takes a unique journey. But that journey must be taken for the balls to stop bouncing around; otherwise, suppressed grief will gain energy and create more chaos in the form of deep sadness, anger, and bitterness. To stop the ripple effect, each person must begin the grief journey.

References

Lewis, C. S., (1996). A grief observed. Harper Collins Publisher.

Maryville University. (2022, January 4). What is grief counseling? Image retrieved from https://online.maryville.edu/blog/grief-counseling/