What to Say When a Client Loses Someone Grief-informed words for the moment you did not plan for
A client's mother dies in the middle of a project. Someone on your team loses her husband. Nobody teaches us what to say, so most of us say something clumsy or say nothing at all. This free guide makes sure that does not happen to you.
Free Guide · Healing Hearts Community
What to Say When a Client Loses Someone
Grief-informed words for the moment you did not plan for
If you have ever frozen
You care about her. You just do not know what to say.
The fear that keeps most of us silent is the fear of saying the wrong thing. So we wait for better words. The days pass, it starts to feel too late, and a relationship we spent years building quietly goes cold. Not because we did not care. Because nobody handed us the words.
"Almost nobody remembers the exact words. What they remember with startling clarity is who showed up and who disappeared."
Terri Chaplin, Grief Companion & Educator-
"I do not want to make it worse." So you say nothing, and the silence starts speaking for you
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"What do I do about the invoice?" A project half finished, a deadline passing, and no good moment to raise it
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"It has been three weeks and I still have not reached out." Now it feels too late, and the guilt keeps it that way
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"She is back and acting like she is fine." Wanting to acknowledge the loss without treating her as fragile
What is inside the guide
Ten pages of what to actually say
Not theory. Real sentences you can borrow, the phrases to retire, and clear guidance on the business side almost nobody writes about.
Part 01
The First Message
Word-for-word scripts for the text, the card, the email to a client you are close to, and the moment you are face to face and have no idea what to do.
Part 02
Seven Phrases That Quietly Cause Harm
Kind sentences that land wrong, why they land that way, and a better line to use instead. You have almost certainly said a few. No guilt required.
Part 03
What to Do About the Work
Deadlines, invoices, refunds, bereavement leave, and the first call back. The part nobody writes about, and the part that quietly costs relationships.
A sample from the guide · The first text or message
"I just heard about your mother, and I am so sorry. Everything on our end is paused and handled. Nothing is waiting on you and nothing is at risk. Please do not think about it. I will check back in a couple of weeks, and until then there is nothing you need to do."
If you only say "I am so sorry" to a client, you have left her holding a quiet worry about the project, the deadline, or the money. Naming that it is handled is one of the kindest things you can do, and almost nobody does it.
The idea most people miss
Month three is the loneliest month
In the first two weeks she is surrounded. Meals arrive. The phone does not stop. Then the cards stop coming, everyone returns to their own lives, and she is left alone with it, right around the time the shock wears off and the loss becomes real.
One reminder in your calendar puts you in the small group of people who are still there when it matters most. The guide shows you exactly when to set it and the four sentences to send.
How support usually disappears
Grief does not follow this curve. Support does.
Who wrote this
Meet Terri Chaplin
"I have spent years sitting with people in the worst weeks of their lives. What I have learned is that your words do not have to be beautiful. They have to be present. That is a much lower bar than the one most of us are holding ourselves to, and this guide is built to help you clear it."
Terri is a Grief Companion and Educator with over six years of experience holding space for people navigating profound loss. She came to this work through her own. She honors grief without trying to fix it, and she trains professionals to do the same.
- Over six years companioning the grieving
- Founder of Healing Hearts Community
- Creator of the Healing Hearts Master Grief Coach Certification
- She came to this work through her own loss
If you want to go further
You do not have to be a professional to be a steady presence
The guide covers the moments you did not plan for. If you find you want the whole skill, not just the scripts, there is a next step waiting whenever you are ready.
You are here
Get the words
Download the free guide and keep it somewhere you can find it fast, because you will need it before you expect to.
When you want the skill
The Ethical Grief Support Standard
A short, practical course on supporting grieving clients without causing emotional harm. You earn a Certificate of Completion you can put in front of the people you serve.
If something wakes up
Master Grief Coach Certification
For the few who finish and feel called to do this work properly, the certification is the next door. Most people stop at step two, and that is completely fine.
Before you need it
You will need this sooner than you think
Nobody downloads this guide on the day it happens. They download it beforehand, and then they are the person who knew what to say. Get it now, keep it close, and be the one she remembers showing up.