Monthly Archives: November 2020

funeral homes in Bellevue, WA

Helping The Bereaved After A Celebration Of Life

Celebration of life events at funeral homes in Bellevue, WA can be joyous occasions that help loved ones to gather, talk about their loved one, remember the good times, and honor a life well-lived. Just because the people at that event smiled and laughed doesn’t mean they aren’t dealing with grief and mourning outside of that service. If you are trying to support a person who is going through bereavement, there are lots of things you can do after the celebration of life service is behind you. Here are a few ideas.

Make Sure They Eat Well

It can be hard for a person who is grieving to think about themselves long enough to eat well. They might just grab something unhealthy because it’s convenient and close by without really thinking about what it does to their body. They might also not feel hungry, so they don’t eat at all. As a friend, you can drop off healthy meals, give them gift cards to local restaurants you know they like, or deliver things like fruit trays that are healthy and easy to snack on. You want them to feed their body well so they are able to have as much energy as they can get for the mourning process.

Encourage Discussions About Feelings

If you and your friend are used to sharing deep thoughts, it might not be hard for them to let you in on what they are feeling. If you don’t usually go there, it might feel awkward for them to open up. Encourage them by letting them know you are there and that you will listen to whatever they need to say. It can be good for them to share what they are going through, talk about their loved one, and emote in whatever way they need to. Just letting things out can help them move their grief forward.

Find Support For Them

While you want to be there for your friend, you may not be the help they need. They might feel less alone in talking to others who are going through similar experiences at the same time, like in a grief support group. As someone wanting to be there for them, you could find those groups for them and offer to drive them to and from the meetings.

funeral homes Bellevue, WA

There are lots of things you can do alongside funeral homes in Bellevue, WA to support a friend as they plan a celebration of life. But lots of people step out of the woodwork to help with final services. To be a true friend, you need to be there before, during, and after those services. Continue to check in on their grief, even after a year passes and the anniversary approaches. The professionals at Columbia Funeral Home & Crematory can help you with more ideas and options as well as grief resources to help you be the friend you would want if you were in the situation of mourning that someone else is experiencing at this moment.

funeral homes in West Seattle, WA

Moving On From The Celebration Of Life At The Funeral Home

There’s no such thing as an easy path through grief when you are making final service plans for a loved one with funeral homes in West Seattle, WA. Right after the death occurs, you might feel a sense of numbness and shock as you put together their services. If you decide to go with a celebration of life, that is a nice way to honor a life well-lived and allow your family to bring up and share favorite memories of good times. However, once that service is over, you have to find a way to move forward with your life and find a new sense of normal. Here are a few things you might do to come to terms with the loss.

Spend Time With Friends

While you will always miss your loved one, spending time with other people you appreciate and enjoy can help you remember that there are a lot of good things in your life, like good people. You can have lunch dates, invite friends over for movies, or do other low-key things. Your friends want to be there for you and by letting them hang around, you are doing something good for you as well.

Volunteer Somewhere Special

If you have some extra time off from work and you aren’t sure what to do with yourself, consider volunteering somewhere to get rid of some of that time and give yourself something to feel good about. Whether you help at a community food pantry, make scarves for homeless, or help re-shelve books at the library, you are doing something for the community that can be helpful and aid you in your own recovery at the same time.

Get Away From It All

Most companies will give you several days (or more) of bereavement time off and you might want to use some of that time to get away for a while. A change of scenery to a bed and breakfast in the next time can help you mourn as you need to and take time away for yourself. You can spend time with family members that are out of town or go to another city with pretty views to help yourself remove the most obvious reminders of pain and your loved one’s passing.

funeral homes West Seattle, WA

There are lots of other things you might do to help yourself heal and find a new sense of normal after celebration of life services that you hold with funeral homes in West Seattle, WA. If you need further help or advice as to what you might do to help yourself heal, the professionals at Columbia Funeral Home & Crematory are here to help. We have plenty of grief resources that we can pass along to you in order to help you move forward. It’s never going to be easy, but it’s something you can do with time and the right resources. Go back and look at the activities around the celebration of life, too, to remind yourself of the honor your loved one enjoyed at that event.

cremation services in Bellevue, WA

Planning The Celebration Of Life For After Cremation Services

When a loved one passes on and you choose cremation services in Bellevue, WA for them, there are lots of other avenues you can take to honor them after the cremation is complete. Some people have an ash scattering ceremony while others want something more, like a full memorial service. Traditional memorials are generally on the somber side. But you can also go another route and enjoy a celebration of life. That type of service is much more jovial and brings up happy memories and good times. You are able to honor a loved one’s life well-lived. Here are a few steps to take in planning the service.

Choose A Theme

Not all celebration of life services have to have a theme, but they can, and it can bring the service alive in a new way. If your loved one adored bowling, that can be the theme, and everyone can wear their favorite bowling shirts or perhaps a group will even go bowling in their honor. You could use a Hawaiian theme for the last trip they took (and loved) and everyone can wear Hawaiian shirts. Sports is another theme that might fit your loved one. It can help to give the celebration an angle, but it’s not absolutely necessary.

Consider The Activities

What will your guests do at the celebration of life? Will you have a picnic? Play games at the park? Perhaps you will just gather and take turns sharing happy memories. Think about the activities that will go along with your theme or what you want the celebration to feel like. You can put together a program, if you want, but depending on what you are doing, you don’t have to.

Choose A Date, Time, And Place

The service might have an obvious location, like if you’re going bowling or want to watch a baseball game. If not, you have options of parks, churches, funeral homes, and other locations. Choose a date and time that works well for you and spread the word to family and friends. You will want to tell them not only when to show up and where, but also what type of celebration you are having so they are able to fit into your vision for the service.

Captureacremation services in Bellevue, WA

If you are ready to plan a celebration of life service after a loved one has cremation services in Bellevue, WA done, the professionals at Columbia Funeral Home & Crematory are here to help. While we plan services of all different types, we specialize in life celebrations and we can help you put whatever spin you want on the services you wish to have for your loved one. This is a wonderful way to honor a life and remember the good times. We will take your ideas and plans and implement them for you, so you have as few burdens as possible. This celebration of life should be whatever you want it to be to honor that special person.

cremation saervices in West Seattle, WA

Available Grief Resources After Cremation Services

There are lots of things you can do after a family member goes through cremation services in West Seattle, WA to help yourself with the grieving process. There are also plenty of grief resources available to help you meet your goals in finding a new sense of normal. Here are a few things that might help you move forward.

Celebration Of Life

Whether you have already had another type of service or not, a celebration of life is a great way to honor someone’s life and remember the good times. These services are much more light-hearted than a regular service. Even if you have a traditional memorial service, it can be nice to also have a celebration of life in order to celebrate a life well-lived and honor your loved one in another way. It can make you feel good to look back on the memories.

Join A Grief Support Group

There are lots of different support groups that exist to help with grief. You can surely find a group that meets your needs. Talk to the funeral director that helped you with your loved one’s cremation and they should have a list of those in the area that might help you find a good fit. There are groups that deal with grief in general. There might be a group that deals with losing a loved one specifically to cancer. There are groups that deal with losing specific loved ones, like a child, a spouse, a parent, or something else of that nature.

In Person Counseling

Meeting with a counselor who specializes in grief can really help you move yourself along in the right direction towards healing and a new normal. They know the stages of grief and they will help to reassure you that you are moving along at your own pace, whatever that is. They will make you feel less alone and more ‘normal’ in a sense. Your grief is your own and everyone is different. They can reassure someone who is grieving and let them know that whatever they are experiencing by way of emotions is okay and normal.

Online Therapy

There are also people you can meet with online to get the therapy and talking in that you want. You can plan your sessions around your life, your work, your kids, and so on. There are chat rooms and even online counselors that can help you with your grieving.

cremation services West Seattle, WA

When you are ready to get through the grieving process, there are lots of things you can do. The professionals will help with cremation services in West Seattle, WA, as well as the things you need after, like grief resources. The experts at Columbia Funeral Home & Crematory are here to help with anything you need, before, during, and after whatever services you want to have for your loved one. First, you will want to honor your loved one’s life and second, you need to take care of yourself during the grieving process to a new normal.