A healthy grieving process is essential to good mental health. If people are not able to deal the loss of a loved one in a healthy way, they are likely to suffer from complicated grief, a condition where people’s grief symptoms continue indefinitely. This can spark long term mental health issues which can become very difficult to manage. 

There are a lot of important steps that you need to take during the grieving process and if things get overwhelming, it’s always good to talk with someone you trust or go to therapy. However, people often underestimate the importance of the funeral process. These are some of the reasons why funerals play such an important role in the grieving process. 

Acknowledging The Loss

The first step in getting over the loss of a loved one is to acknowledge the loss in the first place. Unfortunately, many people feel as though the situation is not real and they cannot come to terms with the loss. When you have a funeral service, it brings some level of formality to the loss and makes the situation more concrete. Often, this is the moment when people first begin to acknowledge the loss and they are able to start moving past it.  

Celebrating The Life

It’s equally as important to celebrate the life instead of focusing solely on the loss. Your mental health will suffer a lot if you only focus on the loss and don’t consider the good memories that you had with the person while they were still alive. Creating a funeral service that celebrates them and installing granite headstones that set their memory in stone helps keep things in perspective. Although that person is no longer here, you still enjoyed your time with them and that’s always worth something. Celebrating their life is such an important part of the grieving process because it’s the only way to move forward with a positive mindset. 

Support From Family And Friends

Grief is hard to deal with on your own and the support of family and friends is critical during this difficult time. It is well documented that isolation and loneliness contribute to feelings of depression, especially when people are already going through a difficult time. It’s easy to cut yourself off from people and withdraw from social situations when you are feeling low, but that only extends the grief period and makes you feel much worse. The funeral is an opportunity to get the support you need from family and friends. Sharing time with other people that are dealing with the same difficult feelings helps you to feel less alone and that support makes such a huge difference to your mental health. Many people also get closure when they share old memories and come together with family and friends.