Funerals are certainly difficult, sorrowful events. However, holding a meaningful funeral can be a beneficial step in the grieving process for mourners. Bereaved people need to be able to acknowledge their sorrow, honor their loved one, reconcile their grief, and go forward to find continued meaning in life. Funeral services and rituals can help put those who are grieving on the road to healing.

How Funerals Help Mourners Deal With Grief

1. Funeral Services Honor the Decedent

When someone dies, loved ones often worry the deceased person will be soon forgotten. Funerals encourage acknowledgment of the person who died and allow mourners to share fond memories with others. This type of testimony of life honors the decedent's influence on friends and family members and assures their importance and value.

2. Funerals Offer Opportunities for Group Support

The funeral service brings people together who are sharing the same source of grief — the death of a common loved one. The funeral creates an atmosphere of love and support that allows people who are grieving to strengthen bonds with each other. The funeral home also provides an accepted venue for expressing painful feelings. Mourners can openly weep at a funeral service and be surrounded by support.

3. Funerals Reinforce the Reality of Death

Many times the overriding feeling when someone dies is disbelief, particular if the death was sudden and unexpected. The funeral reinforces the reality of death. When a person witnesses a casket being lowered into the ground at a burial service, they must face death’s finality. Coming to grips with the reality of death is important in moving toward healing.

4. Funeral Rituals Provide Stability During Chaos

Funeral rituals can provide stability during a time of suffering. Because they are familiar practices, rituals tend to make us feel more grounded and less helpless during times of sorrow and chaos. Even non-religious funerals can provide a feeling of ease because of the rituals involved in the service and burial.

5. Funeral Services Encourage Healing

Funerals allow mourners the opportunity to say their final goodbyes. Those who are grieving can find support in others, so they don't feel alone in their grief. And though healing and closure won’t be immediate or complete, the funeral itself can encourage the process of healing and moving forward.

For more than 75 years, Porto Funeral Homes in New Haven County, CT, has assisted grieving families with funeral services, burial services, and cremation services. They can also help with pre-arrangements for funerals, burial trusts, urn selections, and other such needs. Visit their website to learn more about how they can help. Contact this family-owned funeral home's location in East Haven at (203) 467-3000, or call (203) 934-5000 for West Haven.