After cremation services offered in Sterling Heights,, MI, you will begin the grieving process for your deceased loved one in earnest. Grief is a powerful emotional state and it will affect, for some time, every aspect of your life as you work your way through its intensity into a place where you still feel the loss (that will last as long as you live), but you will also be wrapped comfortably in the memories of the time you had with your loved one.

The grieving process is not just emotional. The intensity of grief affects hormone production, cognition, and vital organs in your body. You will probably notice many of the manifestations of this very soon as your loved one dies.

One of the first symptoms you will likely experience is the feeling of being mentally in a fog or disconnected in some way from what is going on around you. This is a normal part of grieving. To help you through this and to counteract its effect on you, find someone you trust and can depend on to be by your side in the first few hours, days, and weeks after your loved one dies.

There are many things that need to be taken care of immediately after death. You will find that you’re overwhelmed and that, at times, even the smallest things can make you spiral into crying and being unable to function in that state.

Have that friend there to hand your phone to so they can deal with calls and text messages. Have them with you at the funeral home while you’re making funeral arrangements for your loved one, so they can take notes, ask questions, and help you as you make decisions about the final disposition of your loved one.

Take them with you when you have to handle legal and financial matters so that they can take notes, help you process information, and provide help when decisions need to be made or actions need to be taken.

Another symptom of grief that you will likely experience is sleep disruption. When we are in a highly-emotional state, hormonal production in the brain gets out of sync and the normal physical processes, like sleep, that they control are affected.

If your loved one had a terminal illness or was dealing with a serious chronic health problem, then you were most likely providing caregiving for them before they died. Caregiving itself can start the sleep disruption cycle because you have to stay alert enough to be available day or night when your loved one needs you.

Correcting that high alert state doesn’t happen overnight. Melatonin is the hormone that controls your sleep cycles. When production is disrupted, then sleep issues follow. You may be able to fall asleep, but not able to stay asleep. You may find that you can only sleep an hour or two at night, but you can easily sleep three or four hours during the middle of the day (not a viable scenario when you return to work).

There are several healthy ways that you can ease your body back into a better sleep routine.

The first way is to make sure that you have an hour or two before you want to go to sleep where your body has the ability to and gets the signals it needs to relax. Put away electronic devices. Even if you have the blue screen function set to turn on at night, interacting with technology stimulates your mind to stay awake.

Take a warm shower just before you go to bed. Drink a hot cup of herbal tea (for many people, chamomile tea is very relaxing) with the room lights dimmed and white or pink noise (or a fan) in the background. Make sure the room is at a comfortable temperature. Lay down in your bed – don’t sleep in a chair or on the sofa downstairs – and close your eyes.

All these healthy actions will encourage sleep and will eventually allow you to reestablish healthy sleep patterns.

For information about cremation services in Sterling Heights,, MI, our caring and knowledgeable staff at Lee-Ellena Funeral Home is here to assist you.