Ceremonies, commemorations, and memorial services give ways that the individuals who experienced the loss of a loved one can mourn and grieve. Burial/ funeral services have been in human practice since 60,000 BC, and each culture and civilization have had memorial services from that point forward. Memorial services assist us with grieving and set us on a rational way to actively take part in routine life tasks.

COVID-19 has changed how we do numerous things in our day-to-day lives. The requirement for social separation has brought about virtual gatherings replacing actual get-togethers. Zoom conferencing has become inevitable to carry out numerous tasks. An online party time isn't just about as fulfilling as spending time with companions in person. It’s all about handshakes, hugs, catharsis b sharing the memories of the deceased with other close acquaintances. And getting to know more by other people telling the same little incidents.

But now instead of all these the clergymen be they priests, imams or rabbis preferred to use phone calls and messages to carry out shared grief customs or are accompanied with sanitizers, social distancing, and making it (rituals) brief when present in a group of people. The last resting ceremonies being practiced for centuries now are significantly modified. These sympathies are currently occurring via telephone and using live streaming so significant in the distress interaction.

Indeed, even get-togethers of close loved ones are confined even in the event of when a loved one needs care while sick or if someone passes away.  Coronavirus has muddled up different facets of life; individual sorrow, collective moments of delight and happiness, celebrations, family get-togethers, local area emergencies, and misfortune, or any other event that calls for formal or informal meetups. But the pandemic has impacted grief experienced at the individual and community levels. Not being able to conduct the funeral ceremonies and other grief rituals left the close ones/ family members with ambiguous loss. This way the grief and loss feelings are steered out in a complicated and restless way. The mourning and loss may reside within prolonging the natural grief and bereavement process.

Grief and loss are attributed to shared and community support. The other alternatives in form of telephone calls and messages may prove less efficient compared to rituals and funerals attended in person.

The Dual Process Model of Coping with Bereavement

This model explains how grief and bereavement are part of our daily lives and how o cope with them effectively. The Dual Process Model of Coping with Bereavement (DPM) operates in two major ways and individuals go back and forth between them as they mourn and grieve.

·         Loss oriented

Coping with help of things that remind you of the person who has died and their death are loss-oriented stressors. These could be thoughts, feelings, things, actions, occasions, or events related to the person who has died enabling you to focus and grieve on the loss of a loved one. These could also be their belongings, old photos, what they like to do, how they do it, what they don’t like, and how would they react in certain situations- remembering these events or imagining them helps to grieve over the loss.

·         Restoration oriented

This coping is based on bereavement secondary level stressors that allow you to rethink and replan your day-to-day life without the deceased person in a healthy way. It is an attempt to reorient yourself back into routine life. For instance, cleaning the house, being busy at the workplace, or watching TV. Making oneself fully engaged in daily errands and chores as to avoid the feelings of grief and loss

·         Oscillation

The third mechanism is a mix of above mentioned coping strategies. In mourning, a person moves back and forth between loss-oriented and restoration-oriented grief to bring himself back to normal life. Sometimes he confronts the loss (loss orientation coping) and sometimes avoids the loss altogether and is part of usual life activities.

Healthy coping strategies

1.      Realize your sentiments/feelings are valid

Sorrow is chaotic and a characteristic reaction to loss. There are no right or wrong approaches to deal with it. There are, obviously, shared characteristics, however, our reaction to loss is unique for each individual. Generally, grief is initiated by a sudden shock, a phase of mourning, the preoccupation with thoughts and memories of the loved one, physical and behavioral reactions based on the grief and honor to the deceased, and gradual adjustment in day-to-day life. It definitely takes time to restore oneself and be as active in routine life as before.

2.      Adaptive thought patterns

You need to acknowledge what you can't change; this implies tolerating the passing yet in addition the presence of the pandemic and its results. You additionally need boldness, innovativeness, and mettle to change what you can. This means discovering approaches to reestablish your prosperity and adapt to the pandemic, which incorporates acting in manners that are reliable with significant individual qualities or profoundly held interests, being able to face and address significant difficulties throughout everyday life, and having a feeling of having a place and making a difference on the the planet.

3.      Sudden shock is no less than a nightmare

After the loss, the feelings and mourning talks are full of “what if….”. These what-ifs are directed to not experiencing the loss, what if I had not let him go alone, what if he didn’t eat that, what if this hadn’t happened. These are basically the prior events leading to the misfortunate loss of a loved one. Immediately after the shock, the individual is preoccupied with these thoughts. In the case of COVID-19 and other sudden circumstances, these what-ifs are stronger and hard to let go of. This is known as a "derailer" because it can divert the restoration and healing course.

4.      Try to not let blame overpower you

 You will probably end up feeling survivor's blame. This is exceptionally normal, yet it is something to notice and focus on while attempting to not allow it to dominate and direct your decisions as you push ahead. As such, you need to permit yourself to have euphoria and fulfillment in your life once more. That may take some time. Simply make an effort not to keep yourself away from having positive feelings and enjoying them.

5.      Look for hurdles in the healing course

Guilt, self-blame, shame, anger imagining alternative ways that can postpone the misfortune events, losing faith in yourself or others, avoidance of reminders of the loved one and /or social isolation excessive avoidance of reminders of the loss, and extreme social isolations are some of the hazardous thinking and behavioral manifestations that makes the individual stuck in the grieving process and not letting him heal effectively.

6.      Connect with social distancing

Check-in with each other by calling, messaging, or through webcam or online media, and remember the virtual embrace! This doesn't need an inside and out discussion. Simply an update that you are thinking about the individual and keeping in mind that they are disconnected, they are in good company. Drop off food or goods while noticing physical distance, or shop online to send things.

7.      Be part of virtual rituals

This is a hard time confounded by the failure to take part in conventional demise and sorrow customs and exercises. Offer or go to virtual gathering burial services, funerals, and dedications. It is necessary to respect the existence of our lost loved ones and their role in the community. Photographs and recollections can be posted on virtual mediums and seen by numerous individuals to praise their existence and their cherished part.