I Am Grieving
By Amaal Zaki
Grief is that silent pain you feel in your heart when you think of a loved one who is no longer here. It arrives in the moments when you miss them but cannot reach them. They are not there, and you have questions that no one can answer. There is the guilt for the apology you did not get a chance to offer, or the words of love you wanted to share but kept inside. Grief is deep and complex. It is painful, and it does not always get easier with time. Sometimes, it gets worse.
What helps with grief? How do I make it easy? Does this pain and feeling of loss ever go away? These are questions I have asked myself over and over. While I have the answers, living them is the hardest part. The loved ones we lose leave an imprint on our souls that never fades. They become part of us. We have all the memories, but we do not have them.
How do you recover from that?
The weight of grief would crush any soul. It is heavy, and no matter how strong you are, it will find you. I try to make peace with my own losses. Seeing a friend try to cope with the loss of a child who lived for only three days, seeing mothers grieving unborn children who never had the chance to experience life, and seeing fathers mourning their sons, their pain hurts as much as my own. I often feel I do not know what to say to them. I usually offer the standard sympathy, but what I truly feel is a deep sorrow for the pain they will carry for the rest of their lives. It will not go away. I wish I could do something to help, but this is not a burden anyone else can carry for you. It will hurt, and I hope that you find a way to make the path a little less painful.
Life is strange. Sadly, grief is part of it. It does not matter who you are, you will experience it in one way or another, and no one can truly prepare you for that.
What we can do for our loved ones who are grieving is simply be there for them. Offer them a shoulder to cry on and ears to listen. We must avoid invalidating their pain, their way of processing, or the time they take to move through it. Be kind to everyone who is grieving. This pain is deep, and it affects everyone differently, in different forms and with different
levels of intensity.
About the Author
Amaal Zaki (Ama) is an Irish writer whose work spans nonfiction and fiction, exploring themes of grief, healing, sex, power, and the politics of being heard. With an academic background in biochemistry, nutrition, and pharmaceutical science, including a Master of Science in Pharmaceuticals, Ama brings scientific rigor and structural integrity to her investigations of complex social and systemic issues. Her writing has appeared in Grief Digest, Village Magazine, Mad in America, and Mad in Ireland. Discover more about Ama
and her work at linktr.ee/Iamama2025 or on Instagram @that_ama_.
