The First Year of Grief — Companion & Organiser (Printable PDF)
Grief is not one thing. It is a person you miss, and it is also a pile of paperwork nobody warned you about. This kit holds both.
The First Year of Grief is a 16-page printable companion and organiser for the year after losing someone. It does not tell you how to feel or promise you stages. It gives you one ordered plan instead of forty tabs, and space for the things that only you can write.
WHAT'S INSIDE
• A gentle timeline — first week, first month, months 2–6, 6–12, and the anniversary, with the honest note that grief keeps no schedule
• The practical admin of death, in dependency order — who to notify, accounts to close, certificates, subscriptions, digital accounts
• Who I've told — so you never have to remember who already knows
• Kindnesses received — who brought food, who sat with you; people forget, this page doesn't
• The hard-days calendar — birthdays, anniversaries and holidays, named in advance, with a plan for each
• Asking for help — how to ask for something specific instead of "let me know if you need anything"
• Grief that isn't sadness — anger, relief, numbness, guilt; all normal, none of it broken
• Letters to them, memories worth keeping, and what you want to remember
• Things people wish they'd known — including a warning about scams that target the recently bereaved through obituaries
HONEST NOTES
Guidance, not gospel — this is a practical organisation tool, not legal, tax, medical, or religious authority. It is not therapy and it is not a substitute for support from real people or professionals. Rules and paperwork differ everywhere: every legal or financial step in this kit says "Please verify independently" rather than pretending to know your jurisdiction.
Drafted with AI assistance and then reviewed and curated by a real person who's been through it.
Instant download. Print at home (A4, prints fine on US Letter). Personal use only.
Last Reviewed: July 2026.
I'm sorry you need this. I hope it makes one part of it lighter.