Losing a family member or a friend due to an accidental death or even a long illness can be painful. Even if you totally expect death to happen (i.e. dying after a terminal illness), the sadness can still be overwhelming. You definitely will experience grief and there may be a mourning period you go through as well.

Grief and mourning are two terms that seem interchangeable and even society sort of uses them interchangeably. However, they are different and by knowing the difference between the two, you can move forward through the grieving process a little easier with less stress and pain. With grief, it is a compilation of your feelings, emotions and thoughts regarding the loss of a loved one. With mourning, it is a course of action you may take in order to heal emotionally. Consider grief an emotional thing while mourning is a physical thing.

Some people who have never really lost anyone feel that there should be a clearly delineated, progression to healing both grief as well as the mourning stages. However, nothing could be farther from the truth. Each person's emotions are different and they experience and feel things quite differently. What may work for one person may totally make a situation worse for someone else. Allow people close to you grieve and mourn a loss of someone on their own terms.

There are those people in society who feel that grief should not be dealt with publicly. These are the people who are uncomfortable with any type of emotions and perceive any outward signs of grief like crying as weak. The fact of the matter is showing grief such as crying is quite healthy and can in itself be healing. It helps purge the sadness and is part of mourning.

No one can truly get over the death of a loved one and ignore grief. Instead, the goal should be finding ways to work through the grief. Talking with a good friend, a therapist, doctor or clergyman can be quite helpful. Physically seeking help and acknowledging your grief is part of the mourning process.

Grief is the reaction to some type of loss in your life and death of a loved one is the most natural thing that people grieve about. With grief, there may be feelings of anger, confusion, denial and even depression. What you do in order to combat those feelings is so important to the mourning process.

It is important to note that if you feel that you or someone is grieving too long, obsessing over the loss rather than trying to get through it and getting on with life, you should seek the help of a professional, like your doctor. Depression could be the result and various medications as well as therapies can help get those emotions back on track.

It is ok to cry just as it is ok to "forget" for a little while only to be suddenly struck by the fact that you are without that loved one and feel sadness all over again. However, you know things are looking up when you can remember the loved one with fondness and perhaps regret without the crying and overwhelming sense of grief. This means that the mourning process is truly over.