How do you Grieve Mindfully?

How Do You Grieve Mindfully?

by Yasemin Isler

Grief is not something we fix.

It’s not linear. It’s not tidy. It’s not a problem to be solved.

Grief is a natural, often overwhelming response to loss—a reflection of the love, meaning, or identity that’s been altered. And for many of us, the world rushes us past it. Tells us to be strong. To carry on. To move forward.

But what if we didn’t rush it?

What if we made space for it—honestly, tenderly, and with care?

This is the heart of mindful grieving.

Mindful Grieving Begins with Being With What Is

Mindfulness asks us to meet this moment—not the one we wish we were in, not the one we were in before everything changed, but this one.

Exactly as it is.

This means acknowledging pain without pushing it away.

Naming what’s present in your body—tightness, exhaustion, tears.

Noticing your emotions as they rise and fall, sometimes without warning.

And yes, noticing your thoughts too:

  • “I can’t believe they’re gone.”

  • “Will I ever feel okay again?”

  • “Maybe I should be doing better by now.”

Mindfulness helps us observe these thoughts without being consumed by them.

We don’t silence the inner voice—we listen to it, gently, without judgment.

We remember: Thoughts are not facts. Emotions are not permanent.

Everything is changing, including our grief.

Awareness + Compassion = Capacity

Grieving mindfully doesn’t mean you’re calm all the time.

It doesn’t mean you meditate grief away.

It means that you start to develop the capacity to sit with what’s hard—to be with sorrow, confusion, rage, or numbness—and to treat it all with compassion.

You may find yourself grieving in layers—sometimes deeply present, sometimes distracted, sometimes grateful, sometimes undone.

And that’s okay.

Nothing in grief stays the same.

Feelings shift. Memories revisit. New insights arrive.

This is the impermanent nature of all things—including our hardest seasons.

You Don’t Have to Do This Alone

Mindful grieving is not about isolating yourself with your sadness.

It’s about allowing yourself to be supported—in body, mind, and heart.

This is why I offer grief support grounded in what I call the MCCG™ framework:

Mindfulness, Compassion, and Community for Grief™.

My work includes:

Whether you’re in early grief, navigating an anniversary, or facing the complex terrain of long-term loss, there is space for you here.

About Me

I bring over 40 years of personal and professional mindfulness practice to this work.

As a professor of mindfulness, a certified mindfulness and compassion teacher, and a thanatologist (specializing in death, loss, and bereavement), I have spent decades guiding people in moments of deep transition.

I developed the MCCG™ framework as a way to hold grief not just with knowledge—but with presence, depth, and heart.

If you’ve ever wondered:

“How do I keep living while honoring who or what I’ve lost?”

—I’m here to walk beside you.

You’re not broken. You’re grieving.

And you’re not alone.