The Cut-off Grief

9th April 2026

Grief is not always about the loss of loved ones after their demise. Another type of grief that's prevalent but is not much talked about is the grief of staying firm in your decision of cutting off some people; It's not what you wanted, but that was necessary for your well-being.
Cutting off and moving on are terms usually heard together. But still, there is grief left behind. Because it does not suddenly become all bad. There are good days, better days, fun times, cherished memories, and then, on some unfortunate day, it all crashes. So, there are incidents that happen and give you a warm, gooey feeling of Deja Vu. The grief that we are talking about in this quote creeps in at these times.
Should we cut off or keep compromising, thinking about this grief?
Cutting off is not bad, but do it when you are convinced that you have given your 100% and things still look hazy.
How to overcome this grief?
There are two ways to do it.
1) You cut off only when you are sure you have tried everything that could make it work.
2) After you cut off, every time this grief hits you, remind yourself that was not what I wanted, and it was impacting my mental well-being.
Grief of this nature often clears a massive amount of emotional space. While the void feels heavy initially, it eventually allows for the cultivation of connections that are grounded in consistency and communication rather than volatility.



The pain of being cut off is deep, but it is also a powerful (if painful) filter that eventually leaves you surrounded only by those who are willing to stay and speak.
Navigating the aftermath of this type of grief is tricky, and there is no thumb rule either. However, there is a rough 4-point plan for the same.
1) Acknowledge the Trauma of Abruptness
2) Externalize the Narrative
3) Build Your Own Closure
4) Avoid the "Social Media Audit."
Again, this won't help you completely. There would be times when you would repeat these points multiple times, or you may feel stuck at a particular point for the longest time. But these pointers have helped me, hence I am sharing this tried and tested way to deal with this type of grief.

This post is a part of Blogchatter A2Z Challenge 2026.