Often used humorously, when someone pretends that a situation is more serious than it really is. Oh Man, Oh My Gosh, Oh Lord, Wow and Come On, are commonly used euphemisms.

Definition by: Wordwizard:

good grief!

by Ken Greenwald » Sat Sep 23, 2006 7:38 pm

Dear Legal, Don’t mind Wiz. He can’t help himself – he just has this thing (Good brief!) for men’s underwear. (<)

Mild or minced oaths such as GOOD GRIEF!, for an expression of surprise or horror, follow the Hebraic and Middle English tradition of avoiding the use of sacred words, such as God, by substituting words with the same initial letter. Thus for GOD these oaths substitute such words as George, ginger, Godfrey, golly, gosh, gracious, gravy, grief, etc., and By God! becomes By George!, Good God! becomes Good gosh!, Good gracious! Good gravy!, Good Grief!. There are similar such substitutions for Christ (e.g. cracky, cricky, criminy, cripes), JESUS (e.g. gee, gemini, Jeez, jeepers), LORD (e.g. land, law) and so on for DAMN, HELL, etc.

GOOD GRIEF first appeared in print in 1900, but it became especially popular since the late 1950s from its frequent use by Charlie Brown (1950), one of the characters in Charles M. Schulz’s comic strip, Peanuts. I would say that the expression was originally British since its first appearance was in Joseph Wright's historic English Dialect Dictionary (EDD) (see 1900 quote below) published in 6 Volumes from 1898 to 1905. Wright was Professor of Comparative Philology at Oxford University with a special interest in British dialects.

Now that I've given you definitions and examples using "Good Grief", here is my definition: Grieving to come to a Good ending, so I guess it should be "Good Griefing" (Just love making up a new word) !! Most of us have experienced the loss of a loved one, friend, acquaintance or a pet and have grieved. The "Grieving" process is different for every one and lasts different periods of time.

My first loss was my cousin, who was my best buddy. I was nineteen at the time and he was fifteen. I suffered panic and anxiety attacks for years afterwards, until I was about 25. They reappeared in my early 30's and lasted several more years. I lost my daddy when I was 28 and my mother and my grandmother when I was 35 within three months of each other. I have also experienced the loss of my father-in-law and my mother-in-law. Panic and anxiety attacks can be triggered by a traumatic experience and sometimes, in my case, the culprit was also a thyroid problem. In any event, I have been grieving for many years of my adult life.

When I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis at age 55, I felt much the same way I felt when I lost a family member, although I did not realize what was happening. It wasn't until a couple of months ago (I'm now 62) that it dawned on me that I was grieving the loss of the life I had. Not being able to do the simple things I used to do. Feeling like no one calls because I can't participate in the fun things anymore and I feel like people treat me differently.

Then the loneliness creeps in. I feel totally left out of adventures because they either don't want to bother with me or I am embarrassed that I can't keep up. So no one asks me to go anywhere anymore. It's so very hard for me because in my mind's eye, I'm fine, but physically I know I can't accomplish what I used to. I am still the same person to me, I still like to laugh and be with friends, but I feel like they aren't there anymore.

I apologize to my family all the time because I can't get going first thing in the morning, or I can't lift that pot into the oven, or I can't get the lid off the pickle jar, or bend over to pick something up, or turn that light bulb, or grab the load of clothes from the dryer, or I have to rest, or vacuum the whole house or walk quickly up those steps. And those things are worth grieving about after someone has lost the ability to accomplishment menial tasks. Other people don't think of it that way, but I am grieving.

This grieving process is so very hard. I can be happy one minute and the next I am drowning in a pool of tears.

Photo I took in New Orleans

Grief

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Bereavement" redirects here. For the film, see Bereavement (film).

For other uses, see Grief (disambiguation) and Griefing.

A family mourns during a funeral at the Lion's cemetery during the Siege of Sarajevo in 1992.

Grief is a multifaceted response to loss, particularly to the loss of someone or something to which a bond was formed. Although conventionally focused on the emotional response to loss, it also has physical, cognitive, behavioral, social, spiritual, and philosophical dimensions. While the terms are often used interchangeably, bereavement refers to the state of loss, and grief is the reaction to loss.
Grief is a natural response to loss. It is the emotional suffering one feels when something or someone the individual loves is taken away.^[1] Grief is also a reaction to any loss. The grief associated with death is familiar to most people, but individuals grieve in connection with a variety of losses throughout their lives, such as unemployment, ill health or the end of a relationship.^[2] Loss can be categorized as either physical or abstract,^[3] the physical loss being related to something that the individual can touch or measure, such as losing a spouse through death, while other types of loss are abstract, and relate to aspects of a person’s social interactions.^[4]

As shown in the definition of "grief" from Wikipedia, we can grieve, not only for the loss of a loved one, but losses related to our physical being. It is just as powerful as grieving after losing a loved one dies and in some cases harder to shake.

One of the things I am trying to do to alleviate this loss, is delve into my hobbies. In my case, crocheting has helped and I am trying new techniques and stitches. Watching how-to videos, reading new patterns and stitches has helped me a lot. I guess it makes one feel better and have a feeling of accomplishment especially because I am grieving the loss of physical activity. I also believe depression and grief go hand in hand.

Here is an article I found today on my news feed on Facebook. Touches on the grieving process for people suffering from chronic diseases...a must read.

psychologytoday.com/blog/turning-straw-gold/201405/3-things-the-chronically-ill-wish-their-loved-ones-knew

Photo I took - St. Louis Cathedral - NOLA

Photo I took - cross atop St. Louis Cathedral - NOLA

Grief is work but one cannot stop the process. You must continue until you come to a good place and accept the worst and enjoy the best. I'm just beginning my journey in handling my grief. At least I realized what has been happening and hopefully, with a little fortitude and my will to conquer this problem, I can trudge forward and let myself go through the "Good Griefing" process. Life is still good ! Just uncovered an old Art Journal and think I will continue it as a Gratitude Journal. I enjoyed art journaling and it made me draw, paint and write a little each day which makes me happy. So hopefully turning it into a Gratitude Journal will bring positive thoughts and a brighter outlook to each day.

Found this article on beginning a Gratitude Journal....it's a keeper !