Reading and reflecting is part of what I do.
Reading is also something that I’ve loved doing all my life.
It’s been a lot harder. And easier to avoid.
I find fiction is a way back into reading.
From It’s OK That You’re Not OK.
I hear the same thing from just about everyone in grief’s ally days: grief obliterates their ability to read, comprehend, and sustain attention. Forget reading several books at once, as you used to. Reading one chapter even one page–is emotionally and mentally taxing.
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No matter how much of a book person you were before your loss, your capacity to read has most likely been impacted by grief. There’s not much you can do about that. For some, their comprehension returns, but their attention span never returns to its pre-loss state. For many others, comprehension and attention span gradually return, but their areas of interest in reading and learning take a completely new path.
If you’re grieving this secondary loss of your reading ability, know that, in most cases, it is transitory. It just takes longer than you might think to regain (or rebuild) your reader’s mind..
It’s OK That You’re Not OK, Megan Devine, Sounds True, 2017, pgs. 127-128.
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