Saying nothing at all.
We could also call this blog post, SH*T People Don’t Say When You’re Grieving….
Hey, it’s not your fault that our society has no clue what to do when someone dies, and no one ever taught you how to handle it, but your grieving person probably has no idea what to do themselves at this point either. I do know one thing though, saying nothing at all and slowly backing away from a grieving person like they have a contagious and deathly flu, is NOT the answer. Do you want your loved one to feel even more isolated, hurt, lonely, scared, and sad? No? Awesome, then SAY SOMETHING. PLEASE!
A great thing to say if you’re scared of not saying the right thing is, “I am not sure what to say, but I know I want to be here for you in whatever capacity you need”, or “I want you to know that I am here for you, do you want to talk about their death right now?” You could even say “Hey, I don’t know what I am doing right now or how to help, but I am reaching out because I love you”.
Something is better than nothing…
I beg you, do not run away from their pain.