Grief Worksheet: Copy-and-Paste Template for 2026

A grief worksheet is a set of gentle, written prompts that help someone put a loss into words: who or what they lost, the memories they want to keep, the feelings that keep returning, the routines that changed, who supports them, which dates will be hard, and how the bond with the person who died carries on. The template below covers all of that in eight sections plus a weekly check-in log, and you can copy it today, whether you are grieving yourself or you are a grief coach preparing it for a client.

If you are a coach, you will also need somewhere to send it, have it completed, and keep the answers with the rest of the client's record. We make Coachful, a coaching platform where a worksheet like this can sit in the client's branded app next to their sessions, signed coaching agreement, check-ins and notes, so you are not chasing PDFs across email threads. If you are reading this for yourself, skip straight to the template; nothing else on this page is required.

One thing first, said plainly. This worksheet supports reflection and coaching. It is not grief counseling or therapy, and it cannot diagnose anything. If you are thinking about ending your life or about joining the person who died, please call or text 988 now in the US (the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline), or call or text 9-8-8 in Canada. Elsewhere, call your local emergency number. The US government's page on 988 explains what happens when you reach out.

What should you decide before using a grief worksheet?

Settle six choices before the first prompt reaches anyone: who it is for, when it arrives, how much to ask, how answers are shared, where it is stored and what happens if an answer worries you. These decisions shape the experience more than the wording does, because grief makes people tired, and a worksheet that arrives at the wrong moment or asks too much in one sitting can feel like homework instead of care.

The last row matters most. Decide in advance what you will do if someone writes that they cannot see a reason to keep going, or that they have stopped eating. Having that plan written down is part of practicing within scope, which is what the ICF Code of Ethics asks of coaches when a client's needs go beyond coaching. If you are still building your practice around these boundaries, our guide to what grief coaching is and when you need more sets out the line between coaching and counseling in detail.

The grief worksheet template (copy and paste)

Here is the full template. Copy everything between the first heading and the end of the weekly log. Replace the [bracketed] parts. Keep the opening note to the reader: it gives permission to stop, which many grieving people need to hear before they will start.

Before you begin

This worksheet is yours. There are no right answers and no deadline. You can answer in single words, in long paragraphs or not at all. If a question feels too heavy today, write "not yet" and come back later, or never. If at any point you feel unsafe or think about ending your life, stop and call or text 988 (US) or 9-8-8 (Canada), or your local emergency number. Your coach, [coach name], will read only what you choose to share.

Section 1: Naming the loss

1. Who or what did you lose? [Name, relationship, or what the loss was: a person, a pet, a pregnancy, a marriage, a home, your health, a future you expected]
2. When did it happen? [Date, or "it is still happening" for a loss that unfolds slowly, such as dementia]
3. How did you find out, or where were you? Write only as much as feels bearable.
4. What words do you use for it? Some people say "died", some say "passed", some say "lost". Which word feels true for you right now?
5. Is there anything about this loss other people do not seem to understand?

Section 2: Memories you want to keep

1. Three small, ordinary things you remember about [name]: a phrase they said, a smell, a habit.
2. One memory that makes you smile, even if it also hurts.
3. One memory that is hard, and that you do not have to fix or resolve here.
4. An object you keep, or want to keep, and why. [Object]
5. If someone who never met [name] asked what they were like, what would you want them to know?

Section 3: Feelings, as they are this week

1. Circle any that fit, and add your own: sadness, numbness, anger, guilt, relief, fear, longing, loneliness, gratitude, confusion, exhaustion, [your word].
2. When in the day are the feelings strongest? [Morning, evening, at night, in the car, at meals]
3. Is there a feeling you think you are "not supposed" to have? What is it?
4. What does your body do when grief arrives? [Tight chest, tears, tiredness, restlessness, appetite changes]
5. What has helped, even a little, in the past week?

Section 4: Routines that changed

1. What did a normal day look like before the loss? Walk through it in a few lines.
2. What does a normal day look like now?
3. Which tasks did [name] used to handle that are now yours, or that nobody is doing? [Bills, cooking, school pick-up, phone calls to family]
4. Which moments of the day feel emptiest?
5. One small routine you would like to keep, start or let go of in the next month. [Routine]

Section 5: Your support map

1. People you can call when it is bad: [name and number] [name and number] [name and number]
2. People who help with practical things (food, paperwork, childcare): [names]
3. People who drain you right now, even if they mean well: [names, or "I'd rather not write this"]
4. Places or communities that steady you: [faith community, support group, walking route, online group]
5. Professionals involved or worth contacting: [doctor, grief counselor, hospice bereavement team, faith leader]
6. If you are in crisis: 988 (US, call or text), 9-8-8 (Canada, call or text), or [local emergency number].

Section 6: Hard dates and anniversaries

1. List the dates in the next twelve months that may be hard: [birthday] [anniversary of the death] [wedding anniversary] [holidays] [first day of school] [Mother's or Father's Day].
2. For the next hard date, what would you like the day to hold? Rest, company, a ritual, ordinary work, or nothing planned?
3. Who would you like to be with you, or to check in with you, on that day? [Name]
4. What could you say to people who expect you to celebrate as usual? Write one sentence you can use. [Sentence]
5. Is there a small way to mark the day for [name]? [Lighting a candle, cooking their recipe, visiting a place, writing a letter]

Section 7: Continuing bonds

1. Grief does not always mean letting go. Many people keep a connection with the person who died. Where do you feel [name]'s presence, if anywhere?
2. What did [name] teach you that you want to carry forward?
3. Is there anything you wish you had said? Write it here as a short letter, if you like. [Letter]
4. Is there anything you imagine [name] would say to you now?
5. How would you like to honour them in the coming year? [A donation, a planted tree, keeping a tradition, finishing a project of theirs]

Section 8: What you want from coaching right now

1. What would make the next four weeks a little more bearable? [One or two things]
2. Which decision is waiting that you would like support with? [Returning to work, clearing belongings, moving, telling the children]
3. What would you like your coach to avoid saying or asking?
4. How would you like to be checked on between sessions? [A short message, a weekly check-in, nothing between sessions]

Weekly check-in log

Fill in one row each week. Two minutes is enough.

• Week of: [date]
• Overall this week (1 = very hard, 5 = steadier): [1 to 5]
• Sleep: [mostly okay / broken / very little]
• Eating: [mostly okay / less than usual / more than usual]
• One moment that was hard: [moment]
• One moment of relief, warmth or ordinary life: [moment]
• Someone I connected with: [name]
• Coming up next week (dates, tasks, worries): [list]
• Anything I want my coach to know before we talk: [note]
• Safety check: have I had thoughts of not wanting to be alive? [no / yes, and I have contacted 988, 9-8-8 or someone I trust]

If you want to adapt the template for a different kind of loss, such as divorce, job loss or a parent with dementia, the coaching questions generator can draft alternative prompts you then soften and edit in your own voice.

Why does each section of the worksheet matter?

Each section does a different job: the early ones help the person name what happened, the middle ones map daily life and support, and the later ones look gently forward. The table below lists what each section is for and what a coach should watch for when reading the answers.

If your client is also working on what they value now that life has changed, our values worksheet pairs well with Section 8. For clients who are ready, later in the work, to notice what is still good, the gratitude worksheet can follow, but only when they ask for it; gratitude prompts offered too early can feel like being told to cheer up.

What must grief coaches add before sending it?

Before this worksheet reaches a client, add four things: a clear scope statement, a referral plan, a privacy note and a check against local rules. Grief work touches mental health, and the template above is only safe in practice when those pieces sit around it.

A scope statement

Put a short line at the top of the worksheet or in your coaching agreement: "Grief coaching offers support, reflection and practical planning. It is not counseling, psychotherapy or medical care, and your coach does not diagnose or treat any condition." Many coaches put the longer version in the agreement they send before the first call; see our page on coaching contracts for where that wording usually sits.

Signs that someone needs a grief counselor or doctor

Refer, and say so kindly and directly, when you notice any of these:

• Thoughts of suicide, of wanting to die, or of wanting to join the person who died. Share 988 (US) or 9-8-8 (Canada) straight away, and follow your written safety plan.
• Not eating, not sleeping, or not managing basic self-care for weeks.
• Rising alcohol or drug use to get through the day or night.
• Intense yearning or preoccupation that has not eased long after the loss and keeps the person from work, family or daily life. Clinicians now recognise this pattern as prolonged grief disorder, and only a qualified professional can assess it.
• Flashbacks, nightmares or panic after a sudden, violent or traumatic death.
• Physical symptoms that worry the person, such as chest pain or significant weight loss. That is a doctor's question, not a coach's.
• A grieving child or teenager. Work with parents and point them to a child-focused bereavement service.

The National Institute of Mental Health's suicide prevention page lists warning signs worth reading before you start this work. In plain text, the 988 Lifeline's own site is 988lifeline.org, and in Canada the 9-8-8 service is described on canada.ca.

A privacy note

Grief answers can include health details, family conflict and money worries. Tell the client where their answers are stored, who can read them, and how to ask for them to be deleted. Keep coaching notes separate from any clinical records; if you are also a licensed clinician, clinical notes belong in a system built for that. Coachful, for example, is not HIPAA-certified and is not meant for clinical record-keeping.

A check against local rules

Data protection law (such as GDPR in the EU and UK), rules on what an unlicensed practitioner may call themselves, and duty-to-warn expectations vary by country and state. A short review by a local lawyer is worth the cost once, when you set up your practice. Our guide on how to start a grief coaching business covers that setup in order.

What does a completed grief worksheet look like?

Below is a short filled example for a fictional client, to show the tone and level of detail that tends to be useful. It is an example only: "Maya" is invented, and real answers are usually messier and shorter.

Example only (fictional client)

Section 1. I lost my dad, Robert. He died on 14 March after eight months with pancreatic cancer. I was in the hospice room holding his hand. I say "died" now; "passed" sounded like he went somewhere without me. People don't get that I was also his carer, so I lost my job of looking after him too.

Section 2. He whistled badly while making coffee. He called me "kiddo" until I was 40. His workshop smelled of sawdust and oil. A happy memory: him teaching my son to fish and both of them falling in. Hard memory: the last week, when he didn't know me. His reading glasses are on my desk.

Section 3. Numbness, guilt, relief, exhaustion. Worst at 6 a.m., which is when I used to call him. I feel guilty about the relief. My shoulders are tight all the time. Walking the dog helped.

Section 4. Before: work, then drive to Dad's, cook, meds, home by 9. Now: work, then I sit in the car outside my own house. Nobody is handling his house or his post. I want to keep the dog walk and start sleeping before midnight.

Section 5. Call: my sister Ana, my friend Leila. Practical: neighbour Tom (post), Ana (paperwork). Draining: my aunt, right now. Steadying: Saturday park run. Professionals: GP, hospice bereavement team (they offered a group). Crisis: 988.

Section 6. Hard dates: his birthday on 2 June, Father's Day, the first anniversary in March, Christmas. For his birthday I want company and his chili recipe. Ana will be with me. Sentence for my aunt: "I'd like to keep this year quiet, thank you for understanding."

Section 7. I feel him in the workshop. He taught me to finish what I start. I wish I'd said thank you for the fishing trips. I'd like to finish the bookshelf he was building.

Section 8. Next four weeks: a plan for his house that doesn't happen all at once. Please don't tell me he's in a better place. A short weekly check-in on Sundays.

Weekly log, week of 21 April: 2 out of 5. Sleep broken. Eating less. Hard: found his handwriting on a list. Relief: laughed with Ana. Connected: Leila. Next week: meeting about the house. Safety: no.

Notice what a coach would take from this. There is a concrete, practical focus (the house), a clear request about language, a hard date seven weeks away, a hospice group already offered, and no safety concern this week. Eating less and broken sleep are worth watching over the next few logs rather than reacting to once.

How should you send and store a grief worksheet?

The right delivery method is the one that keeps answers private, ties them to the client's record and lets you see the weekly log over time. A printed sheet is fine for one person working alone; a coach with several clients usually needs something that keeps every answer in one place. Prices for other tools are as listed in October 2026.

A word on the other tools. Practice Better is built around practice management for wellness and nutrition practitioners, with charting and telehealth; Paperbell is an all-in-one admin tool for solo coaches with one price for everything; CoachAccountable describes itself as a coaching back office with worksheets, action plans and metrics, priced per active client. Each can hold a worksheet. The difference is what surrounds it: grief coaching tends to involve weekly check-ins, hard-date reminders, sometimes a support group, and occasionally a short course on practical matters, and that is where one connected client record pays off. For a fuller comparison, see our list of the best coaching software for grief and loss coaches.

How do you run a grief worksheet in Coachful, step by step?

In Coachful, the worksheet becomes one step in a client journey: intake questions when they book, an agreement signed before the first call, the worksheet after that call, then weekly check-ins, small habits and, if you offer one, a group program. Here is how each step looks for you and for the client.

Coachful is a coaching platform for coaches who deliver programs, not just sessions, including solo coaches growing into a small team and coaches replacing four to six separate tools. One membership covers booking, payments, contracts, programs with habits and check-ins, courses, a community, a website with funnels and email, and an AI assistant, with one login for the coach and one branded app for the client. It does not do clinical record-keeping or insurance billing, it is not HIPAA-certified, and it has no PayPal. To start, take a free trial, or ask the team to build your setup for you.

Step 1: Collect gentle intake questions at booking

Booking pages can ask intake questions, so a prospective client can tell you the basics (their name, who they lost, roughly when, and how they heard of you) before the first call. Keep this short. The full worksheet comes later. Intake calls then appear on the Intakes page, where you can see who is upcoming and who became a client.

Step 2: Send the coaching agreement before the first call

Coaching agreements with e-signature are sent before the first call and stored on the client record. This is where your scope statement and referral plan live in full, so the client has read and signed them before any grief prompts arrive. Our coaching contracts page shows how agreements fit into the rest of the setup.

Step 3: Add the worksheet as a resource

Forms and worksheets are one of the resource types in Coachful, alongside courses, downloads, videos, audio and books. Paste the template in, and split it into sections if you plan to release one a week. Our page on coaching forms and questionnaires covers the form types in more detail.

Step 4: What the client sees

The client opens their coach's branded app and sees their next session, their programs, their progress and a required pre-session worksheet waiting in the same place. Nothing arrives as an attachment to lose in an inbox. Answers land on their client record, next to intake answers, the agreement and your session notes. If you prefer a lighter pre-call form for each session, our guide to pre-session worksheet templates has shorter options.

Step 5: Turn the weekly log into a check-in

The weekly log at the end of the template fits naturally into a check-in flow. Coachful's coaching flows library has welcome, daily, weekly and journey flows, including morning and evening check-ins, so the client answers the same few questions each week and you can see the trend instead of a single bad day. This short walkthrough shows how check-ins are set up:

Step 6: Small habits and goals from Section 4

The routine a client chose in Section 4 (the dog walk, sleeping before midnight) can become a habit with a streak, linked to a goal. For a grieving client, keep these tiny and optional; a missed day is information, not failure.

Step 7: Watch the client record, not just the inbox

Each client record holds goals, check-ins, habits, notes, intake answers, tags, payments and sessions, with a status of thriving, active, quiet or at risk. A client who goes quiet around an anniversary is exactly who you want to notice. Michelle, the built-in AI assistant, can brief you before a session from that live record, which helps when you see several grieving clients in a week and want the right dates in mind.

Step 8: Group programs and invoices

If you run a grief group, cohort groups are created automatically when clients enroll in a program, with group chat and video events. Our roundup of group coaching platforms for grief coaches compares options. Payments go through your own Stripe or Razorpay account with an invoice per transaction, and you can choose session credits or payment plans for clients who cannot pay a block up front.

Why Coachful stands out for this setup

Why Coachful stands out: a free white-glove service. From Create, a coach can ask the Coachful team to build a form or worksheet, a program, a coaching flow, a website or an email sequence inside their own account, attaching up to 8 reference links and up to 10 files. Builds usually arrive within about 24 hours. Nothing is invented: no fake credentials, testimonials or prices, and gaps are left for you to fill. For a grief coach, that could mean handing over this template and your agreement and getting back the worksheet, a weekly check-in flow and a welcome journey already set up. Read more about the free white-glove service.

What are the most common mistakes with grief worksheets?

Most mistakes come from asking too much, too soon, in the wrong tone. Here are the ones to avoid.

• Sending it as a cold intake form. A grieving stranger asked to describe a death before meeting you will often close the tab. Ask a few gentle questions at booking and send the worksheet after the first conversation.
• Sending all eight sections at once. Grief is tiring. One or two sections a week is usually plenty.
• Using the five stages as a checklist. Grief rarely moves in neat stages, and a worksheet that asks "which stage are you in?" can make people feel they are doing it wrong.
• Pushing for closure. Section 7 exists because many people keep a bond with the person who died. Respect the client's beliefs, culture and faith.
• No safety line. Every worksheet and every weekly log should include crisis numbers and a direct safety question, plus your written plan for what you do with a "yes".
• Reading answers and saying nothing. If a client writes something heavy, acknowledge it before your next session, even in one line.
• Generic prompts. "How are you feeling?" gets "fine". "When in the day is it worst?" gets something you can work with.
• Storing answers in a shared drive or group chat. Keep them private and tied to one client record.
• Forgetting the hard dates you collected. Put them in your calendar so you can check in the week before.

Coaches who build their own worksheets for related themes, such as limits with family after a death, may also find our boundaries worksheet useful. And if you are still deciding whether this work is right for you, read how to become a grief coach, our overview of grief coach certification, and, from the client's side, whether a grief coach is worth it.

Is this worksheet medical, legal or financial advice?

No. This grief worksheet is a reflection and coaching tool. It is not medical, psychological, legal or financial advice, and using it does not create a therapeutic relationship. If you are a coach, have a licensed clinician review your referral plan and a local lawyer review your agreement and privacy wording once, when you set up. If you are grieving and something in this worksheet brings up more than you can hold, contact your doctor or a grief counselor, and in a crisis call or text 988 (US) or 9-8-8 (Canada), or your local emergency number.

Grief worksheet FAQ

Is this grief worksheet free to use?

Yes. Copy it, edit it and use it with clients or on your own. You do not need to credit us, though we ask that you keep the crisis line note in any version you share.

Can I use this worksheet on my own, without a coach?

Yes. Many people work through it alone, a section at a time. If your answers bring up thoughts of not wanting to live, or you find you cannot manage daily life, please reach out to a doctor, a grief counselor or the 988 Lifeline (US) or 9-8-8 (Canada).

How soon after a loss should someone fill it in?

There is no right time. Some people want structure in the first weeks; others need months before writing anything. Let the person choose, and start with Sections 1 and 2 only.

Does it work for losses other than death?

Yes, with small edits. Divorce, pregnancy loss, a pet's death, a health diagnosis or estrangement all fit Sections 1 to 6. Section 7 may need rewording, for example "what do you want to keep from that chapter of your life?"

What is the difference between a grief coach and a grief counselor?

A grief counselor or therapist is a licensed clinician who can assess and treat conditions such as prolonged grief disorder or depression. A grief coach offers support, reflection and practical planning, and refers out when clinical care is needed. Our grief coaching guide explains the difference in full.

How often should a client complete the weekly log?

Once a week, ideally on the same day. The value is in the trend over four to eight weeks. If several weeks in a row show the lowest score with poor sleep and eating, talk about referral.

Where should coaches store completed grief worksheets?

In one private place tied to the client's record, with clear rules on who can read it and how to delete it. In Coachful, worksheet answers sit on the client record next to intake answers, agreements and notes. Clinical notes, if you are also a clinician, belong in a clinical system, since Coachful is not HIPAA-certified.

What is Coachful's free white-glove service?

It is a build service included on every plan: you describe what you need, such as this worksheet, a weekly check-in flow or a welcome journey, and the Coachful team builds it inside your account, usually within about 24 hours. It does not include recording videos, logo design or ongoing marketing.

Can I turn this worksheet into something I sell?

You can, as long as you rewrite it in your own voice and keep the safety note. Our guide to turning a coaching worksheet into a paid digital product walks through packaging and pricing.

Should children use this worksheet?

Not as written. It is designed for adults. Grieving children and teenagers need age-appropriate support, usually from a child-focused bereavement service, with parents or carers involved.