The Widow’s Comeback: 365-Day Grief Calendar & Workbook
An undated grief-planning workbook for widows with practical help for anniversaries, birthdays, holidays, and other difficult days after losing a spouse.
Inside, you’ll find:
✔️ Monthly healing exercises to process your grief in a way that fits your life.
✔️ A guide to navigating the hard dates—anniversaries, birthdays, holidays, and the unexpected gut punches.
✔️ Encouragement without fluff—because you don’t need empty platitudes, you need real help.
✔️ A gentle roadmap for your comeback—even if you don’t want one yet.
You can’t erase the hard days—but you can prepare for them.
Grief is unpredictable. But some days, you know they may be hard before they arrive: your spouse’s birthday, your anniversary, the day they died, Thanksgiving, Father’s Day, Mother’s Day, or the silence of Valentine’s morning.
This workbook helps you face those days with intention, not fear.
The Widow’s Comeback: 365-Day Grief Calendar & Workbook is an undated grief-planning tool created by a widow, for widows. It combines monthly planning pages with reflection exercises, helping you notice difficult dates, ask for support, and make a gentle plan for the first year and beyond.
Try a planning prompt from the book
The monthly “Plan Your Month” page asks you to consider:
HARD DAYS
WHO CAN I ASK FOR HELP?
MY IDEAS FOR THE DAY
From “Plan Your Month,” page 7.
To try it now, choose one date that feels difficult. Write down someone you could ask for support and one idea for how you might spend the day. You can change the plan when the day arrives.
Try a grief exercise
Name three things you need to forgive yourself for. How will you give yourself the gift of forgiveness?
Adapted from the workbook exercise on page 9. You can answer with a sentence, a few words, or simply sit with the question until you are ready.
Questions about the grief calendar and workbook
Can I start at any time, or is it for a particular year?
You can start whenever you need it. The calendar pages have blank month and year fields, so this workbook is not tied to a particular calendar year.
Do I have to write every day?
No. It combines monthly planning pages with grief exercises. The introduction invites you to do the exercises each month or work ahead at your own pace.
How does it help with anniversaries and holidays?
It encourages you to identify meaningful dates, think about the support you may need, and make a plan. Lisa shares her experiences with birthdays, wedding anniversaries, holidays, and other difficult days.
Is it only for the first year after a loss?
It was created with the first grieving months in mind, but difficult second, third, and fourth occasions matter too. Because the pages are undated, you can use the workbook beyond the first year.
How is it different from the memoir and guided journal?
The grief calendar and workbook focuses on preparing for difficult dates and working through monthly grief exercises. The memoir shares Lisa’s personal story; the guided journal offers space for your own memories and reflection.
Continue your comeback
Try these free resources from Lisa:
A Simple Exercise for Anxiety After Losing a Spouse — a gentle way to name what feels overwhelming.
One Small Step After Loss — help choosing one manageable next step.
How to Support a Widow After the Funeral — practical help you can share with people who want to support you.
Read Sample Page from the Book
Each page is designed to help you feel less alone, understand your grief, and take small steps forward.