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• For young people

If you have been bereaved

You might be feeling a huge range of emotions. You might not be feeling much at all.

You might be worried about what's going to happen next. You might be feeling relieved.

You might be overwhelmed with sadness at one point. You might want to think about something else the next.

You might have people around you that want to talk more than you do. You might be struggling to find someone who understands.

However things are for you today, we're glad you've found your way to our site. Below are some suggestions of other websites that might help, along with some tips from other young people who've been bereaved.

Suggested sites

Have a look at these dedicated sites for young people who've been bereaved

• Hope Again
• Winston's Wish
• Child Bereavement UK

You can also get help from

• Childline
• Get Connected

Tips from other young people

You might find some of these useful now, or in the future. If none of these seem to be helping, talk to someone you trust to get some more ideas.

What I can do...

• Tell people what help make me feel better and keeps me feeling safe.
• Ask .................. for support and help whenever I need it.
• Ask questions about what happened. I need the facts to help me understand and talking about it will help.
• Share with others that sometimes I think I am to blame, even if it doesn't make sense.
• Remind myself that, like the seasons, things will change.
• Tell an adult if I feel helpless and hopeless about the future. They can talk to me about what might help.
• Think about what 'I can do' and then 'just do it', rather than thinking 'if only.'
• Find different ways of expressing my feelings by exercising, writing, listening to or playing music, and carrying on with my interests.
• Find out about groups and support for children or young people who are also coping with loss and change - and go along.
• Remind myself that I am not going crazy. My sleeping, eating, thinking, remembering, concentration and motivation will be up and down.
• Ask for whatever extra help I may need in school. Talk to my teachers about my hopes for the future.
• Tell a trusted adult if anyone is giving me a hard time or hurting me. I will carry on telling adults until things change for the better.
• Ask to be included in planning the funeral and in important decisions that are going to affect me.
• Keep something special that belonged to the person and start a memory box or book to help remember them.
• Do something special on anniversaries that will help me remember and cope with what has happened.
• Talk to the person that has died in my imagination. This may help me say things that I never got the chance to say. It may also help me feel still connected to them in some way as they were a part of my life.
• Look after myself and allow time for sleeping, eating, resting, thinking and relaxing.
• Laugh and have fun without feeling guilty or bad about it. This doesn't mean that I am 'over it', have 'forgotten' or 'couldn't care'.

The young people who put these together were working with Seasons for Growth in Scotland. They wanted to say that these things do help even though it may not appear so. It may take a long time. If nothing is helping, they suggest that you talk to someone to get some more ideas.