1 hour Meditation? No thanks. Here’s what else we can do.

Grief can feel overwhelming—like waves crashing over us, making it hard to find stillness. Sometimes, the thought of meditating or sitting quietly with our emotions feels too heavy. And that’s okay.

Mindfulness doesn’t have to look like perfect peace or long meditative sessions.

After my late partner Nathan died I certainly did not find it possible in my intense grief to sit calmly and meditate. My brain was in survival mode and the immediate present I was already living in – and trying to figure out what the heck next. Instead, what we can do when grief feels like too much, is pause and take a moment to notice something good around you. I love my roses.

So for me, it is simply stopping to smell the roses—for you it might be different, it might be admiring just for a moment the colour blue in the sky, enjoying the taste of your coffee, pausing to love your friend or your child’s laugh, stopping for an extra moment to pat your pet, or appreciating the warmth in your bed quilt (also all things I have and still do).

Mindfulness in grief is simply about being present in the moment, grounding yourself in the now, and finding little anchors of calm amidst the intensity of grief.

It doesn’t need to be elaborate—it just needs to be kind to you. 🌸