How Grief Affects the Body: Physical Symptoms and Healing Tips
We most often think about the emotional fallout of grieving, and it’s easy to forget that emotional distress can manifest as physical symptoms. When going through the grieving process, you might be aware that you need to take care of your emotional wellbeing, but did you know your physical health also needs special care?
In this guide, we’re exploring the impact of grief on the body and how you can manage the effects. We’ll offer some practical tips for healing the physical symptoms of grief so that you can take the best possible care of yourself. But first, we need to understand how an emotional state can impact your physical health.
How does grief impact physical health?
Grief can impact you in a number of ways. First and foremost, it triggers a stress response that alters hormone levels in your body. Stress hormones including cortisol, adrenalin and noradrenalin. These stress hormones trigger changes in your body to allow you to deal with a fight or flight situation. Blood sugar spikes, your blood pressure increases and you’ll have a spike in alternans.
These responses should subside when the threat is removed, but when it comes to grief, there is no end in sight for this particular threat. This means that you’ll have sustained levels of stress hormones in your body, which can lead to inflammation. Inflammation should be a short-term response to damage in the body, designed to help it heal. When inflammation is sustained, this can lead to secondary health problems.
Tackling the physical symptoms of grief
Now that we understand how grief impacts your health, we can look at some of the techniques you can use to tackle these symptoms. You might not experience all of these at once, but these are some of the most common issues.
Sleep disturbances
When your body is in a heightened state of stress, you’re going to struggle to sleep at night. Racing thoughts and a racing heart can make it more difficult than ever to enjoy a restful night’s sleep.
The best way to counter this is to avoid caffeine to keep you awake during the day, no matter how tired you are. Caffeine will aggravate inflammation symptoms while also increasing the effects of cortisol and adrenaline. Getting some light exercise during the day (but not right before bed) will also help you to find more restful sleep.
Fatigue
Even if you are managing to get some sleep, fatigue can take its toll while you are dealing with grief. You might feel emotionally and physically exhausted, leading to brain fog and a lack of interest in doing your usual activities.
Digestive problems
Grief might impact your appetite, leaving you with no interest in food. It could also cause stomach upset, indigestion and nausea. Some people also notice a change in bowel habits as a result of high cortisol levels.
Trying to eat little and often will help you to keep up your strength, without overwhelming your digestive system. Small meals and grazing throughout the day will allow you to maintain your strength.
A loss of appetite is common with grief, which can lead to weight loss and muscle loss. Exercise will often stimulate the appetite, so if you are struggling to eat, try going for a brisk walk.
Pain
Inflammation in the body can manifest as generalised pain. You might have muscle aches, joint pain, headaches or tension in your body. It’s also common to experience headaches, even if you are well-rested and hydrated.
Speak to your GP about long-term pain medication options. You might be able to take over the counter pain medication in the short-term, but this is not recommended for long-term use.
Heart problems
When blood pressure is elevated, this can have a wide range of implications for your heart health, particularly if you were a little unhealthy beforehand. There is a condition known as broken heart syndrome, which is a temporary weakening of the heart muscle due to emotional stress. In extreme cases, this could lead to symptoms that mimic a heart attack.
If you are concerned about your heart health, speak to your GP. The additional worry of thinking about your heart health on top of your grief should be cause for concern, so don’t be afraid to seek reassurance.
Weakened immune system
Long-term stress and inflammation can make your immune system less effective, which will leave you vulnerable to every cough and cold. You can bolster your immune system during this stressful time by making sure that you eat a healthy and varied diet. Supplements could also be used to give your body a boost.
Caring for your body during grief
There are some simple steps you can follow while grieving to help care for your body. By taking things back to basics, you can support your physical health, which will in turn support your emotional health.
- Start by cutting out caffeine to ensure you can sleep at night.
- Exercise every day, even when you don’t feel like it.
- Avoid unhealthy food and nourish your body with fresh fruits, vegetables, lean protein, healthy fats and whole grains.
- Avoid alcohol, as this can increase stress hormones and disturb your sleep.
The benefits of mindfulness for grief
Perhaps one of the best practices you could adopt while grieving would be a daily mindfulness practice. There is a common misconception that mindfulness is all about forcing the mind to go blank and think about nothing. In the grips of grief, this might sound impossible.
In reality, mindfulness is all about learning to be comfortable with your thoughts, observing them without judgement, letting them come and go. Through regular practice, you can learn to control strong emotional reactions.
A popular analogy is that you can stand outside in a storm and experience the cold and the rain, or you can observe it from inside a warm house. The storm will be the same whether you feel the full force, or whether you observe from the safety of your shelter. Meditation teaches you how to observe your feelings without allowing them to cause you harm or distress. You’ll soon discover that emotions are things you can observe and not always react to.