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You deserve help when grief hits hard
Grief is a normal response to loss. But later in life, grief can feel even heavier, especially when it's brought on by health challenges, loneliness, or mourning more often. While most people slowly adjust, grief that stays intense, gets worse, or makes daily life feel impossible calls for extra support.
When you're older, grief can feel especially heavy
Loss later in life often arrives alongside personal health challenges or loneliness. Grief can also be amplified by experiencing back-to-back bereavements.
While it's normal to grieve, ongoing sadness can affect sleep, mood, and daily life. With compassionate support and care, you can move through grief in a way that honors their loss while feeling more connected to life again.
Signs of grief you may notice
Ongoing grief can affect sleep, mood, energy, and health. It can also make it harder to eat well, take medications, or care for daily needs. If you or someone you know is pulling away from people, hobbies, meals, or daily routines, it may be time for support. Unhealthy grief can also impact your body, emotions, and behavior.
Physical Signs
Grief can change sleep, energy, or appetite. Some people may have trouble focusing, forget more often, or seem more confused.
Emotional Signs
With grief, you may experience intense sadness, hopelessness, anger, guilt, or emotional numbness.
Behavioral Signs
Some people talk about the person who died all the time. Others avoid anything that reminds them of the loss.
These changes may be subtle at first. If you’re unsure, take this health screen, or call us at 1-800-423-4400. We can talk through what you have been noticing.
Sadness remains intense for a long time with no relief.
Daily tasks like eating, bathing, or taking medications feel impossible.
You've withdrawn from those you love, feel hopeless, or have lost interest in your life.
There are ongoing thoughts of not wanting to live or wishing you died too.
Symptoms start to resemble depression, anxiety, or trauma rather than a natural healing process.
If you are experiencing an emergency, please dial 911, call 988 for mental health crises, or go to your nearest emergency room.
Does insurance cover help with grief?
Our services support adults whose daily lives are impacted by medical conditions or major life changes. Most people we serve have little to no out-of-pocket costs for our mental health care, caregiver support, and additional care team services. We always check your coverage before your first appointment, so you know what to expect and there are no surprises.
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"Loss doesn't get easier to carry with age — if anything, grief in later life often arrives layered with health changes, loneliness, or losses stacked close together. That weight is real, and it's normal. But it doesn't have to be permanent. With the right support, older adults can hold onto who they've lost while still finding their way back to connection, comfort, and steadier days. "
Other resources
Want more information? Check out our related resources.
How to start the conversation: Talking to a parent or loved one about mental health or memory changes
If you’ve noticed changes in a loved one like irritability, confusion, or just acting out of character, it can be hard to know what to do or how to help. Here are some ways you can get the conversation started with someone you care for.
Anxiety, depression, and sleep changes in older adults
Mental health concerns in older adults are often missed because they do not always look the way people expect. Anxiety, depression, and sleep problems may show up as irritability, physical complaints, confusion, withdrawal, or changes in routine rather than obvious sadness or panic. Recognizing these quieter signs can make a major difference in getting help sooner.
Loss can feel especially heavy later in life
If you or an aging loved one is feeling stuck in sadness, pulling away from daily life, or having trouble eating, sleeping, taking medications, or keeping up with routines, Author Health can help.
Give us a call, and our team will listen to how you've been feeling lately, talk through support options, check your coverage, and set you up with care that supports healing and easier days ahead.