Anticipatory Grief

Grieving What Has Not Yet Gone

Grief does not wait for death. It begins the moment we sense an ending—when we witness the slow fading of a loved one, when we feel the weight of an inevitable loss, when the future we imagined begins to dissolve. This is anticipatory grief, the quiet ache of knowing something is slipping away.

Unlike the grief that follows death, anticipatory grief asks us to hold both presence and impermanence at once. It is a practice of loving while letting go, of staying open while preparing for what cannot be stopped. There is no right way to navigate this space, only a willingness to be with what arises. Ritual, breath, deep listening, and community can help us meet this grief with grace—allowing it to move through us rather than harden within us.