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Suppressing emotions in grief

Grief isn't just an emotional experience—it's a whole-body response. Supporting bereaved individuals means normalizing the full range of physical and emotional reactions they may experience.

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Help Texts graphic titled Why text? explaining that receiving texts increases dopamine and boosts motivation and well-being, with a line-drawn brain icon

Grief Support4 min read

Why choosing text was the best decision I could have made for grievers

When I first chose text messaging as the vehicle I'd use to build a global grief support platform, I thought it would be my MVP - something I could fund off the side of my desk while keeping my tech job. Text, I thought, was affordable, scalable, and nearly ubiquitous. Flash forward 10 years and I believe my decision to build a text messaging platform was the best decision I could possibly have made. I've learned a lot about the technology, psychology, neuroscience, and impact of text as a mental health intervention. Other technologies come and go, but everyone still loves text messages. Here's why.

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Grief Coach social graphic over a rocky coastline: "We get it. Grief is scary. Sometimes we worry so much that we
end up saying nothing at all."

Grief8 min read

How I learned to help the grieving one text message at a time

On my flight home from my friend's funeral, I thought about the fear and discomfort that had kept people from reaching out when my husband died a decade earlier. Their distance had hurt me, but I now knew that it had hurt them too. For over a decade, people I cared very much about had been carrying around guilt and shame. It all seemed so unnecessary. I knew we could do better.

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A couple reading a text message together

Grief Support7 min read

How to support someone who is grieving

You showed up here because someone you care about is grieving, and you want to help. You might be worrying about saying the wrong thing or not doing enough.

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College students smiling while sitting on a bench

Grief Support7 min read

Why does social support drop off when you need it most?

The people in your life didn't stop caring. Here's why social support drops off after a loss, and what you can do when the silence starts to hurt.

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3 min read

How a physician associate used text messaging to get support for grief and burnout

Tracey Piparo is a Physician Associate (PA) with RWJBarnabas Health in New Jersey. She's one of only 200 PAs in the US who specializes in palliative care. Tracey was happy to discover support from Help Texts in 2023, an innovative text-based service offering accessible, confidential, and convenient support via text message. "I believe that there is awesomeness in the simplicity of texts," she says. "As a PA with not only a demanding career but a hectic home life, I appreciate the ability to receive the info when I am able and also appreciate the succinct suggestions that arrive at just the right time."

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Bereavement2 min read

The Ones Who Know Us Best: Sibling Losses

When a sibling dies, it's not just the physical separation. It's also the removal of daily moments. The calls, texts, laughs, and reassurances go away. It’s the conversations that only your sibling would understand, that are lost. For adults, losing a sibling means losing a retirement buddy, support taking care of aging parents, and the ability to share childhood memories. For children and adolescents, losing a sibling young can create losing a playmate and someone to read stories and share childhood with.

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A sample text message reading "Hi, Abby. Today would have been Jason's birthday. Take a minute to send a favorite memory or story to Julie. She'll appreciate hearing a happy story, and it will be good for you too."

Death5 min read

Making difficult conversations easier: text messages and card games that help us talk about death

Whether it’s a card game or text messages, I love that there are new ways to take the awkwardness out of the moments in our lives when we most need each other.

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Close up of an exhausted caregiver resting their face in their hands, representing caregiving burnout and cancer loss.

Grief6 min read

Grieving a cancer loss when you are burned out from caregiving

You did everything. The appointments. The medications. The middle-of-the-night wake-ups.

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Illustration of a teen with long dark hair holding a phone showing a speech bubble, with the title "3 Ways to Support a Teen Who's Grieving"

Grief Coach3 min read

Three ways to support a teen who is grieving, in partnership with the Dougy Center for Grieving Children and Families

Have you ever struggled to know what to say to a teen or young adult grieving the death of a loved one? Try these three tips from Dougy Center and Grief Coach.

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Bereavement4 min read

We’ve removed the last hurdle to grief support: Help Texts now has "Pay-As-You-Go Pricing"

Since our launch in 2018, Help Texts has been breaking down the barriers to grief support.

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Bereavement8 min read

Anticipatory grief: When you grieve someone who is still alive

We're often taught that grief is something that happens after our loved one takes their last breath.

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Written by experts

Our writers are advocates or experts in the grief space.

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Every article goes through clinical review before it publishes.

Updated regularly

Our articles are constantly updated as research changes.

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Blog

Most read blogs

Suppressing emotions in grief

Why choosing text was the best decision I could have made for grievers

How I learned to help the grieving one text message at a time

How to support someone who is grieving

Why does social support drop off when you need it most?

How a physician associate used text messaging to get support for grief and burnout

The Ones Who Know Us Best: Sibling Losses

Making difficult conversations easier: text messages and card games that help us talk about death

Grieving a cancer loss when you are burned out from caregiving

Three ways to support a teen who is grieving, in partnership with the Dougy Center for Grieving Children and Families

We’ve removed the last hurdle to grief support: Help Texts now has "Pay-As-You-Go Pricing"

Anticipatory grief: When you grieve someone who is still alive

Our clinical review process

Our editorial team

Emma Payne

Melissa Lunardini

Rah Adams

Jessica Correa