The Mourning After

Grief is a reality of life. Wanting to learn about it is one of the first steps toward recovery. The more you study and become acquainted with the processes of grief, the better you will be able to deal with it constructively. The fact that you are reading this book indicates that you have chosen to survive. Congratulations! You will not have read very far in authentic literature on this topic before you discover that there are many things that will help you go from a grief you cannot handle to a grief you can handle. You can learn how to manage it. If you don't, it will manage you. This takes work, and it isn't easy. The purpose of this book is to help you understand what is happening to you, why you feel the way you do, and why sometimes you might be tempted to believe that you are losing your mind. Herein we shall attempt to define the meaning and purpose of grief -- one's reactions to it -- and the most creative ways of handling it. - Introduction.