Why Does Taking Care of Your Body Matter When You're Grieving?

Grief is not just emotional — it is physical. The exhaustion, the brain fog, the heaviness you feel in your chest are real, measurable effects happening in your body. Taking care of your physical basics after a loss is one of the most direct ways to give yourself the capacity to move through grief. In Episode 2 of the GRIEF Ladies Podcast, Karyn and Kelly break down what Grounding — the G in the G.R.I.E.F. framework — actually looks like in practice.

What is grounding in grief, and why does it come first?

Grounding is what Karyn and Kelly call the basics: eating, sleeping, and moving your body. These are usually the first things to go when someone dies — and they quietly make everything harder. Grounding is not about being healthy in the traditional sense. It is about giving your nervous system enough to work with so grief does not take everything from you.

When you are not eating enough, the brain fog that already comes with grief gets worse. When sleep is disrupted — and grief almost always disrupts sleep — your emotional regulation suffers, your immune system takes a hit, and the simplest decisions feel impossible. When your body is completely still, grief tends to stay stuck in it.

Grief is associated with elevated inflammatory markers including C-reactive protein and interleukin-6, which increase vulnerability to physical illness during bereavement. Twenty minutes of walking has been shown in multiple studies to be as effective as an antidepressant for mood. (Sources: Kiecolt-Glaser et al.; exercise and depression research literature)*

The reframe Karyn offers in the episode is worth sitting with: these basics are some of the only things you still get to have a say in. When grief makes you feel swept along by a life you didn't choose, what you eat, how you protect your sleep, whether you move your body — those are things you can still control. That is not a small thing.

What can you actually do this week if you're barely functioning?

Karyn and Kelly are not asking you to overhaul anything. The action step from this episode is simply to observe — track your eating, sleep, and movement for three days. Not to judge what you find. Just to notice it. What time did you eat, and how did you feel after? What got in the way of sleep? Did you move at all, and what did that feel like?

Awareness without judgment is where momentum begins. Small, consistent steps build on each other — and sometimes a small shift in one area quietly improves the others. Moving your body a little makes sleep slightly easier. Sleeping better makes it more possible to eat something real. These basics are intertwined, which is exactly why Grounding comes first.

Hear Karyn and Kelly go deeper — including their own personal experiences navigating this after loss: https://youtu.be/vgcyjbdDAkc?si=bPsxl5H0B9-bVsl6

Other GRIEF Ladies Podcast Episodes:

What Is the G.R.I.E.F. Framework and How Does It Work? → https://youtu.be/_0ld4dnUT7I?si=89da5nbDXHa9KOmZ  An introduction to all five pillars and why this approach is different from traditional grief models.

Why Rebuilding Structure After Loss Matters More Than You Think → LINK:https://youtu.be/wbJVX3Q2iv8?si=RDMeAnz56crw8hih — Episode 3 covers the R: how routine and daily structure help grieving people regain a sense of footing.