7 Healing Strategies for Grieving Moms After Child Loss

Grieving Mom, Do you ever wake up and wonder how you’ll make it through another day? Are you wondering if real-life grief strategies even exist? If so, you’re in the right place.

When my daughter Katie died in 2015, I felt like my life ended with hers. I didn’t know how I would ever survive the pain, and most of the books I read made it seem like hope would never return. Over time, though, I discovered small practices that helped me keep breathing, keep living, and eventually find moments of peace again.

These practices became the foundation of my HEALING framework, which I share in my book Journey to Healing: A Mother’s Guide to Navigating Child Loss. Today, I want to walk you through seven strategies that can support you through the daily heartbreak of child loss and gently lead you toward 'healing'.

H — Honour Your Child

Honouring your child keeps their memory alive. For me, that has looked like coffee dates with Katie in our special place at home, creating scholarships in her name, and starting a tradition of buying her a Christmas ornament each year.

Ideas for you:

• Create a memory box filled with photos, letters, or keepsakes.

• Start a tradition on their birthday, such as buying a birthday cake for a another child on their birthday (your local bakery can help you out with that)

• Say their name often.

Honouring softens the heartbreak.

E — Exercise & Self-Care

Grief lives in the body too. Walking became my lifeline in the early days, even when tears streamed down my face. Movement, rest, and nourishing food help you keep your strength up.

Ideas for you:

• Take a 10-minute walk outside.

• Do gentle stretching or yoga. (Follow Yoga with Adriene on YouTube for free)

• Ask: What does my body need right now?

Self-care isn’t selfish. It’s survival.

A — Assistance

Grief is not meant to be carried alone. Whether through therapy, support groups, or a trusted community, finding safe spaces to share your story makes the load lighter.

Ideas for you:

• Join a grief support group. (Here's mine: The Angel Moms Community)

• Seek out a therapist.

• Lean on friends who can listen without fixing.

Asking for help isn’t weakness. It’s courage.

L — Live Life to the Fullest

This one feels impossible at first, but I believe our children want us to live fully and boldly. Living doesn’t mean forgetting. It means carrying them into every new experience.

Ideas for you:

• Try something you’ve always wanted to try.

• Dedicate a trip to your child.

• Celebrate milestones in their honour.

  
  

I — Intentions & Mindset

Our thoughts shape our days. Instead of “I can’t,” try “Maybe not today, but I can.” Reframing your words can shift your strength.

Ideas for you:

• Begin each day with an “I can” intention.

• Reframe “I’ll never” into “I’ll find a way.”

• Remind yourself that falling isn’t failure; it’s part of healing.

  
  

N — Nurture Your Soul

Grief batters the soul. Practices like prayer, meditation, or yoga can reconnect you with peace and your child’s eternal love.

Ideas for you:

• Try guided meditation.

• Spend five minutes in silence, preferably in nature

• Create a sacred space in your home.

  
  

G — Gratitude

It may feel impossible, but gratitude and grief can coexist. Being thankful softens pain just enough to let in light.

Ideas for you:

• Keep a gratitude journal.

• Speak thanks out loud for small moments.

• Share gratitude with someone you trust.

  
  

Grieving Mom, we can walk this road together...

I know this heartbreak never disappears, but it does soften. By practicing the HEALING steps—Honouring, Exercise, Assistance, Living fully, Intentions, Nurturing, and Gratitude—you can find your footing again. These are not quick fixes, but gentle practices that carried me after Katie’s death and can carry you too.

If you’d like to go deeper, I invite you to read my book Journey to Healing: A Mother’s Guide to Navigating Child Loss—written straight from my heart to yours.

XO Lisa Boehm