Grief. How long was your process?

I realize that the grieving process is different for everyone, and that the time it takes to grieve is also different for each person. And preferably, I’d like to hear from people that had a very close relationship with the person that died, and I would also like to hear from people that experienced sudden, unexpected loss. When someone has lived a full life and died in old age… It’s just a little different than when someone dies young, or kills themselves.

Anyway… When did persistent thoughts slow down? When were you able to focus on work or school again? How badly was your work or schoolwork effected? When could you sleep again? Did you blame yourself at all? What type of thoughts are even normal?

I’m starting to seriously wonder if I should talk to someone, but I really don’t want to. I hate the idea of opening up to a stranger like that, and honestly… I seriously doubt if it would even help me cope. I don’t know if I could ever be comfortable enough in that situation to allow it to help me. And I don’t know how to become comfortable with it.