A guided grief journal written to help you process the loss of a wife, and every prompt says wife, from the first page to the last.
The short answer. Still With Me: For the Loss of a Wife is a guided grief journal that helps you process the loss of a wife by writing through it, with 80 written prompts across 9 chapters in 120 pages, sized 6 × 9 inches. The paperback is $29.99 and the hardcover is $39.99. It is written only for the loss of a wife, not adapted from a general grief journal, and every copy is printed to order at a local facility in your region and arrives 7 to 12 business days after you order.
A note before anything else
Losing a wife takes away the person who shared the ordinary days (the mornings, the meals, the coming home) and the future you had both been planning. You may have had fifty years together or five, and it may have been sudden or after a long illness. The house sounds different either way. A journal will not make that smaller. What it does is give the grief somewhere to go: one question at a time, you work through what happened, and you keep her, her habits, the things she said, the life the two of you built, before the details begin to blur. If today is unbearable, please look at our help page; in the US, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline can be called or texted at any hour.
Why a journal written for a wife, not for grief in general
General grief journals ask about "your loved one". That works, but it keeps the page at a distance. A prompt that asks how your wife started her mornings, what she said when you came home, or the thing only the two of you found funny, goes straight to a specific memory. That is the whole idea behind this edition: the same nine-chapter structure as every Still With Me journal, but written word for word around a wife.
It fits if you:
- lost your wife recently and want somewhere to put the thoughts that come at night;
- lost her years ago and are noticing that some memories are getting harder to reach;
- had a marriage with hard stretches or unfinished conversations: the hard parts and letters chapters leave room for what was never said;
- are buying for a father, a brother or a friend who has lost his wife.
What is inside
Nine chapters, written to be worked through slowly rather than finished:
- Who you were: her character, her humor, her voice
- Our beginning: how you met and the early years
- Everyday moments: the mornings, the meals, the coming home, the small ordinary things that go first
- What you taught me: what she changed in you
- The hard parts: the last months, the things left unsaid
- What I miss: named plainly, without tidying it up
- Letters to you: open pages for writing directly to her
- Carrying you forward: her birthday, your anniversary, the rituals that stay
- Still with me: where she is now
Every prompt is a question with room to answer, not a blank page, and nothing has to be answered in order. For how a guided journal compares with a notebook, see guided journal vs blank notebook.
Paperback or hardcover
| Format | Price | Choose it when |
|---|---|---|
| Paperback | $29.99 | You want to write in it every day and carry it around; it lies flat and is light. |
| Hardcover | $39.99 | You want it to last as a keepsake, or you are giving it as a gift. |
Both are 6 × 9 inches with 120 pages and the same 80 prompts. See the Wife edition.
Try the prompts before you buy anything
There is no need to buy a journal to start. We publish 25 free grief journal prompts for the loss of a spouse, with a printable PDF at no cost. If you want the reasoning behind the practice first, read our gentle guide to grief journaling and what research says about writing through loss.
Giving it to someone who lost their wife
Most sympathy gifts arrive in the first two weeks and then stop. A journal is one of the few that still makes sense in month three, on their wedding anniversary, her birthday or the first holidays alone, and it asks nothing back, no reply and no thank-you note. Our sympathy gift guide covers what to write in the card, and the gift sets page pairs the journal with a memorial candle. Journals ship for a flat $6.49 within the US, $8.49 to Canada, $8.75 to $13.45 within the EU depending on the order, and $9.00 to the rest of the world; gift sets that include a candle ship separately, from $7.99.
People look for this in different words: a sympathy gift for someone who lost their wife, a memorial keepsake, a remembrance book, a bereavement gift for the loss of a wife. What it is, plainly, is a guided book of eighty questions to write to her in, bound to be kept. Unlike flowers or a card it is not gone within the week, and unlike a blank notebook it does not ask the person to decide what to write on a day when deciding anything is hard.
Not married, or want an edition that says partner? The spouse loss journals page compares the Husband, Wife and Partner editions. For the loss of a husband there is a separate page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best grief journal for the loss of a wife?
One written for that relationship rather than for grief in general, because prompts that name a wife reach memories that generic prompts do not. Still With Me: For the Loss of a Wife has 80 prompts across 9 chapters in 120 pages, in paperback ($29.99) or hardcover ($39.99).
Is it too soon, or too late, to start a grief journal after losing my wife?
Neither. Some people start in the first week, others years later when they notice memories fading. The prompts do not assume a stage of grief, and nothing has to be answered in order.
Is it a good gift for someone who just lost their wife?
Yes, especially after the first weeks when other support falls away. It does not need to be responded to and can sit unopened until they are ready. The hardcover is the usual choice for a gift.
What if our marriage was difficult?
The journal does not assume an easy marriage. The hard parts and letters to you chapters are there for what was complicated or never said, and you can skip any prompt that does not fit.
How long does it take to arrive?
Every copy is printed to order at a local facility in your region. Printing takes 3 to 5 business days, and most US orders arrive 7 to 12 business days after you order. Shipping is a flat $6.49 to the US and $8.49 to Canada on every journal, $8.75 to $13.45 within the EU depending on the order, and $9.00 to most other countries, and the exact rate for your address shows at checkout.
Is journaling a substitute for grief support?
No. Writing can give grief somewhere to rest, but it is a personal practice, not a treatment. If your grief feels unbearable, please reach out to a doctor, a counselor or a grief support professional. Our help page lists places to turn. In the US, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline can be called or texted at any hour.
What is a good sympathy gift for a man who lost his wife?
Something that still makes sense after the first two weeks, when the flowers and cards have stopped. A guided journal written for the loss of a wife is one option: eighty questions about her, bound as a keepsake, that the person can open when they are ready and put down when they are not. Other gifts that hold up over time are help with the practical things that now fall on one person, a meal delivered later rather than sooner, and using her name in your card.
See all twenty editions on the shop editions page, or find the right one on who it is for.