 |
 |
Finding meaning |
|
 Grief,
Anger, and Loss
You are likely to experience many emotions as you recollect aspects
of your life, think about accomplishments or disappointments, contemplate
what lies ahead, and consider how illness affects who you are. Among
the most powerful of these feelings are grief and anger. People with
life-threatening illness have to confront their illness, their approaching
death, and all of the loss they must face. Grief is a normal, human
reaction to loss. Grief will take its time with you, and you must
take time with your grief. Some days, it may feel like a tidal wave
of emotion, threatening to overwhelm you and knock you off your feet;
on other days, you may feel gently rocked on a calm sea.
You are likely sometimes to feel very angry at the universe, at God
or fate, at your own body or its illness, and at your family and others
whom you love. For people who have been taught to worship and revere
God, or trust in His will, feelings of anger can be very upsetting.
However, as Rabbi Earl Grollman has described it, "Don't worry. God
can take it." Feeling angry is also a normal, human reaction to a
life-threatening illness. You may feel that your spirit is subsumed
by anger. Anger, like grief, can stay with you for a while, but watch
for the ways to let it go.
At those times when anger is not the dominant emotion in your spiritual
landscape, you can stop to consider spiritual questions. Your whole
life is, of course, a spiritual journey, and it is as important to
seek space and time for spiritual concerns as it is to seek the right
treatment or therapy. Spirituality is an integral part of our lives,
and you and your family can insist that caregivers and health care
providers respect your spiritual needs, that they give you time to
pray, meditate, reflect, and worship. |
|
Adapted from The
Handbook for Mortals: Guidance for People Facing Serious Illness,
by Joanne Lynn and Joan Harrold, copyright by Joanne Lynn, used by
permission of Oxford University Press.
|
|
|
