Bouts of Insecurity - Understand that it happens to the best of us:  we are blithely going about our day, feeling just fine, when suddenly, out of the blue something comes along and knocks us for a loop.  These moments can seriously make us doubt how well we are handling our grief and cast a pall over everything else we do. At times when so many of us are riddled with self-doubts it’s hard to get inspired (that’s called being human) so we need to draw on our discipline and bare it all.  More often than not we will feel infinitely better afterwards, both physically and psychologically because doing something positive will inspire us to do even more. You can’t just try to think yourself better, you have to do something tangible to get yourself back on track.  To help avoid future grief meltdowns, do away with unrealistic expectations about how long grief should be, what friends/family did or didn’t do and instead look for inspiration. Inspiration doesn’t come easy when you are grieving.  Some think that inspiration is sitting around waiting to “feel like it” before you do something, but you could be in for a very long wait.  Inspiration comes in many forms but you won’t notice it if you aren’t showing up. Adopting the simple practice of meditation can help you let go of unhelpful habits and fears. Don’t make this complicated, just set your timer for 5 minutes of quiet, uninterrupted silence.  Do nothing but focus on your breathing.  Taking the time to observe your feelings is one of the most powerful ways for you to tap into the power of mindfulness - there you will develop compassion for yourself, imperfections and all. Grief has taught me that life is about living in the possibility of now, not the insecurity of tomorrow, so there’s no need to play things safe.  It’s taught me that I can deal with any problem.  And it’s taught me that being optimistic about life, doesn’t mean being naïve; but instead it’s about living your grief in ways that serve you best. To Our Shared Journey,                                                                                       Mary Francis is a Certified Grief Recovery Specialist® Certified Law of Attraction Facilitator, Early Intervention Field Traumatology (EIFT) Author/Founder of “The Sisterhood of Widows”