Grief
April 2021
Grief [noun]
Intense sorrow, especially caused by someone's death.
To grieve [verb]
To feel intense sorrow
Grief is a shared human experience that will affect us at some point in our lives. Whether it is experienced through the loss of someone close to us, heartbreak or a significant change in our day-to-day lives, grief is a process that shapes our thinking, behaviour and how we perceive our purpose.
In this project, we engage with individuals who participate in different parts of the grieving process. From attending to and caring for a dying person, performing religious ceremonies at funerals or after burials, through to providing self-management and care strategies, our storytellers share their first-hand experiences of the roles they play in how we grieve. These stories highlight how common grief is experienced amongst all of us and yet how little we understand about it. They show us too that when left in the dark, grief can become destructive not only for ourselves but for the people around us.
Our hope is to bring “grief to life” and out of the darkness. We want to show it in all its ugliness and nonsense so that we can better understand its patterns and flaws, and in turn, better support ourselves, better connect us to others and bring us closer to our purpose.
In light of this, I dedicate this project to my own best friends who I’ve lost, learned greatly from and who continue to teach me in incredible ways.
I miss and love you,
Michelle xx
BTL Founder & Editor
Featured Stories
Untangle Grief
A Tech-for-Good Business Supporting Grieving Individuals
After someone close to us has died, we are faced with multiple challenges for which there is still not enough support. Aside from managing our own pain and loss, there is also funeral planning, sorting through assets and finances, closing accounts and potentially the need to support children or dependents. Untangle Grief is a UK based tech-for-good start-up founded by Emma Dutton and Emily Cummin …
Grieving Practices
Processing Loss and Pain Through Religion and Ritual
Robin Stillwater and her partner, Rob Friedman, are both leaders in separate congregations who play a major role in supporting families through grief. Robin is an ordained minister in the Unitarian Universalist tradition and a hospice chaplain whilst Rob is now a Reform Jewish rabbi and chaplain serving with the United States Navy. Having worked with many families, Robin and Rob discuss their experiences dealing with grief and the importance of developing rituals and practices to prepare for and work through loss and grief…
Projecting Grief
The Role of Creativity in Grieving
When photographer Jo Ritchie lost her brother to suicide in November 2017, she began her journey into dealing with grief. Struggling to cope with her loss, she turned towards portrait photography to explore grief through the lens. In collaboration with writer Faye Dawson (who had previously miscarried twice in the space of nine months), ‘Projecting Grief’ came to fruition: an online platform for people to share their grief stories…
What Happens When We Die
Insights from the Accident and Emergency Department
Hospital staff play one of the most important roles in our lives which ironically, will tend to be when we are dying. For many of us, our last moments will be surrounded by nurses and doctors who will be making decisions about how to let us die most comfortably. They will listen to and look at our bodies closely to see if there are signs of life. And if we take that last breath, they will be the first to tell our closest family and friends. Doctor Amanda Mitsios (pseudonym) is a senior registrar in an Accident and Emergency department based in the Midlands who has worked with the dying and dead on a regular basis for nearly 20 years…
Other Projects
Sex, July 2021
Growth, December 2021
Frontline, October 2020
The New Norm, July 2020