I thought I knew everything there was to know about grief. After all, I’d faced some terrible losses by my early thirties. And yet my mom’s death really shook me. The grief and sense of loss was devastating and I found it incredibly hard to pull myself together that first year.

From my experience, I’ve learned that every loss is different and one loss doesn’t necessarily prepare you for the next. Unlike other life experiences, the more practice you have doesn’t make you any more competent at coping nor does it make it easier. Grief isn’t like any other life event. It doesn’t matter how many times you go through it; each time is unique and each loss leaves a different void in your life.

                     
   Illness & Death                            Suicide                                 Miscarriage

When someone close to us is going through a challenging time, we want to be there to give our support. We want to say - and do - the right things that will help them cope and recover - and know they are not alone.

But what do you do when you're truly at a loss for words?

Robbie Miller Kaplan provides the tools you'll need in "How to Say It When You Don't Know What to Say: The Right Words for Difficult Times." Her publications, now available in volumes on Illness & Death, Suicide, and Miscarriage, and e-books on Death of a Child, Death of a Stillborn or Newborn Baby, Pet Loss, Caregiver Responsibilities, and Divorce show insight into the process of grief and detail specific things to say and do, sample sympathy letters, and words of wisdom to reach out to those dealing with these difficult issues.