Most people grieving in the East say Christmas is the hardest time of year

Christmas is a special time of year, spent catching up with family and friends, but it can also be difficult for those grieving a loss.

Over half of people in the East of England experiencing grief say Christmas is the hardest time of the year and one third of people admit that they feel lonelier than ever over the festive period.

Bianca Neumann is Head of Bereavement at Sue Ryder, she told Greatest Hits Radio why grief ramps up at Christmas: "If we don't have a routine or a structure because it's a bank holiday or a slower day, that makes it really hard to feel a sense of equilibrium and balance. That then makes our grief take charge."

In response, the bereavement support charity is raising awareness of the issue and offering advice to help people cope.

Be open

According to the charity, it might be helpful to be open about how you're feeling with people close to you. Having chats with family and friends about your feelings and how you'd like to mark the occasion can help them support you.

Bianca agrees: "It's really important for people to consider a sense of belonging. Belonging and finding others who understand what we're going through can really help us deal with our grief and feel understood. It makes us feel soothed and calm."

Consider old and new traditions

Sue Ryder suggests taking stock of your Christmas traditions and figuring out which ones mean a lot to you and those around you. Whilst you might want to stick with old traditions, it's also OK to change them or create new ones.

Giving an example, Bianca said: "A lot of families I know have stopped having the traditional Christmas meal in the first few years after grief and they opted for having pizza instead!"

Helping someone else

According to Bianca, there are things people can do if they know someone experiencing grief: "Try not to fix, try not to rescue. That means having to sit on our hands sometimes and be guided by their pace.

"It might mean being rejected for an offer of 'hey, come out' and that feeling of rejection can be really hard but supporters, that is your job."

Talk to a counsellor

Finally, if you're struggling with the death of someone, the charity does offer an assessment for online counselling.

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