Processing Altered Grief

The isolation and restrictions from covid19 have left a residue of regret for those who lost a relative and could not either be with them in their dying or had to be limited in honoring them. This has resulted in an altered grief, one that is harder to process. We all need to have more compassion for ourselves and others in the time it will take to make sense of all the loss. It will take a great deal of effort and time as we work through the feelings of regret and unwarranted guilt. Many circumstances were out of our control, yet as humans we tell ourselves we could have done better. So many families who postponed services are not arranging them now as they note it seems as though too much time has passed and others go on with their lives and will not attend. We seem to have missed an opportunity to honor and mourn our dead as small communities of family and close friends. On a larger scale, we have yet to bring recognition to the one million + people who have vanished from our country in the 21st century due to this pandemic.