Steady Support for Grieving Families
What we’ve learned about adolescent grief and how adults can show up in ways that truly help.
Your teenager’s grief will stir up feelings you didn’t expect, in them and in you. If you’ve lost your partner too, you’re both drowning while trying to keep each other afloat.
They’re also still figuring out who they are and where they fit. Grief crashes into that and scrambles everything.
You can’t fix it. You can keep showing up, even when you don’t know what to say.
Looking after yourself is not a detour from supporting a grieving young person; it’s part of the path. Your presence, patience, and steadiness are strengthened when you tend to your own well-being. In caring for yourself, you create a safer, calmer, and more compassionate space where grief can be witnessed, felt, and processed.
Continuing the Journey
To continue learning and supporting your young person:
Explore the Apart of Me game – created with young people for young people, this interactive experience guides them through the darkest moments at their own pace. You can explore it yourself to understand how it helps, and recommend it gently to the young person in your care.
Visit Pathlight Youth-Created Resources – hear what young people wish you would know, and discover insights straight from their experiences.
Additional Resources – a small selection of organisations, books, and helplines that may offer further support and understanding when helping a grieving young person.