Published February 5, 2018
After losing a loved one, you may feel you need support in understanding the emotions you are feeling, or help adjusting to a new kind of life.
Although nothing can replace the love and support of friends or family, mobile apps are among the helpful resources that may help you through the grieving process.
Here, we take a look at five grief apps which may help you understand death and the emotions you’re experiencing when adapting to life after the loss of a loved one.
My Grief Angels
My Grief Angels is a smartphone grief app with the objective of creating a global community, for people to be there for one another during their difficult times.
The non-profit developed app connects and supports people who have lost a loved one. There is a grief chat feature, which allows users to chat with other ‘grief angels’. The app also has a grief meetup feature which allows users the opportunity to create local events for other ‘grief angels’ to join. The Grief Support Network App is available on iPhone, Android, Amazon and HTML5.
Headspace
Headspace is an app aimed at promoting wellbeing through meditation and mindfulness techniques. Coping with grief is one area of mental wellbeing that you can sign up to receive helpful meditations for. You can begin with a ‘basics’ taster and choose to subscribe for regular updates.
Headspace founder Andy Puddicombe says: “You’re not trying to turn off your thoughts or feelings. You’re learning to observe them without judgement.”
The app is available to download on the Apple App Store, and Google Play.
Lilies
Lilies is a user-friendly mobile grief app for young people which gives virtual hugs. Developed by six school girls, the app provides a safe community to share thoughts and memories, as well as grief tips.
A bereavement organisation for kids, Winston’s Wish, is supporting this grief app. It said: “The Lilies project team have created something very special with this app. They did something very few people do — stopped and thought about those children and young people who have experienced the death of someone close to them.”
Apart of Me
Apart of Me is a mobile gaming app developed to provide children with strength and resilience when someone is dying or has died.
Set in a colorful virtual world, the bereavement app was developed by Bounce Works, and allows children to curate memories of their loved ones in a beautiful and engaging way.
Upon opening the app, its users are introduced to a peaceful island that is theirs to explore. As they discover the various different parts of the island, they can undertake quests and puzzles. These have been especially created to help children process their emotions and also help adult carers to begin and support difficult conversations with them.
Nino’s Mourning Toolbox
Targeted at children aged four to 12 years old, Nino’s Mourning Toolbox tells the story of a dinosaur whose sister has died. The interactive story journeys through steps in the grieving process to help children overcome their loss and help families to support each other.
This mobile app invites children to answer death-related questions in a friendly and creative way. The activities encourage singing, drawing, inventing, speaking, thinking and listening as a means to better understand the death of a family member. The app is available for download on Android and iPhone.