Grieving Joely Richardson Returns To Work

people.com:

Joely Richardson is immersing herself in her craft after the sudden death of her older sister, Natasha.

The actress, 44, said her final goodbyes to her sister Sunday. On Thursday, she was back on the London set of her latest project, a remake of The Day of the Triffids, a rep for Richardson confirms to PEOPLE.

Read the whole story: people.com

Comments

[jetbanana]

Grief counselors advise one to get back to a normal routine as quickly as possible.

[TigersEye]

Speaking from experience, I agree. I lost my mother at a relatively young age (22). Once the arrangements are done (funeral/s­ervice/bur­ial, etc.) it's no use just sitting around the house. Sure you're grieving but you'll be grieving for a long time. Getting back into your routine, being around people, keeping busy - that helps you on your way to healing. The grief never truly ends.

[inorbit]

People need more time off from work than they think - or most employees are given by their employees. I know this from personal experience. Joely is probably in a state of shock.

[ponderingmuch]

All the places i have worked give you 3 paid days off for someone related, officially, to you, dying, regardless of where they live or where the funeral is, or how you feel about it.

My father died...3000 miles away, unexpectedly. i needed 7 days for travel plus ceremonies. So I had 4 unpaid days. Given my salary at the time it was a pinch but not devastating.

Then my best friend died, a long lingering horrible death. I could not get paid for it but I needed several months off, and wound up getting fired because i could not contain my grief at work after three days or a month. My work did not suffer, but my otherwise cheerful attitude did..

Different deaths, different feelings, different recovery times.

I do wish we were more like the French used to be.

To those of you who will no wish me to move there, please donate to the cause so I can. They are less far away from taking good care of their citizens than the U.S. is.

[Amalek]

They limit those bereavement leaves so that you don't just knock off your relatives to get extra days off. Company could be held liable for that you know.

[Tatiana]

Amalek, ROTFLOL!

[PhilipB]

I know if I lost my sibling I would be devastated, but I would welcome the connection of my friends and the normalcy of working. So, I think I can relate to going back to work. It is an inportant part of healing.
Blessings to you.

[Oonagh]

I do not know what all of the fuss here is about.... Joely Richardson is going back to work... so..... it has nothing to do with respect or disrespect... it is life...

[xmw]

Exactlt....people have to deal with it everday. I'm so sick of the media promoting anything a celebert does as extraordinary. The good news here is that she can afford a damn good grief counselor...a lot of folks Can't.

[TigersEye]

Of course she's doing back to work, you can't sit around then house dwelling on what happened. The best thing for your psyche is to be back around people, be busy, etc.

[Dupree]

How one deals with grief is a very personal choice that should not be judged by anyone. We should express our compassion and identify with our common humanity...the inevitable of death touches each and every one of us....and respect their unique right to cry, laugh, express anger, share memories and many times ....return to work and keep busy to maintain some sense of normalty.

[PhilipB]

Dupree,
That is beautifully expressed.
Thank you

[ChelleWeTalk]

Would it be possible to have compassion for her -- even if you walked to work in a blizzard an hour after your house set of fire, 45 minutes after the firetruck ran over your dog, and 5 minutes after your husband coded?

The world isn't fair and poor and middle class people pay more then their share, and don't always get deserved compassion. Losing a family member sucks, no matter what your salary. Giving someone less kindness than you received doesn't make the world a warmer place though.

[corneliav]

And this is a big deal because? My beloved mother died and I was back to work in 2 days.

[onedivasinger]

Must we find fault with every single person who might be experiencing a form of human emotion. Ms. Richardson did not ask people to write this story about how she is handling her grief. Frankly, I hope she doesn't give a damn about what people write about her or the family at this point. Some things require a degree of human decency. Even if you have to swallow, take a breath and think before you explode into pettiness.

[ladylove114]

Going back to work 4 days AFTER a loved ones funeral is not at all that big a deal where I live. Getting a "special leave" from the set also sounds a little silly. I remember when Katie Couric's husband died the media was praising her for only taking off of work A MONTH. She was praised for her strength and support of her children and all sorts of silliness. Losing a spouse is horrible and sad but I think of the women I know whose husbands have died and they have no idea how they will support their family without his income, that missed one week of work because they needed their paycheck. Taking nothing away fom Katie's grief, she had way less to occupy her mind than many widows. My point is the media wants to spin any normal thing a celeb does (that we all do everyday) into something special.

[coco51]

Celebrities are not CEO's of AIG! Your backhanded get-at Joely or Couric is insensitive and unnecessary. Had you spoken about the inability of the poor to do likewise and the need for our society to be more sensitive, I'd have agreed wholeheartely with you. The backlash at people with money such as a celebrity who has earned their wealth, even if we think they are overpaid, is unfair. Surely if you had the talent and you demanded the salary, you'd not want someone criticizing your paycheck. Celebrities generate millions of dollars for studios to fund and industry that employs thousands of people, lets not forget the kid or unskilled worker selling the ticket, cleaning the movie theatre, cleaning the restrooms or prepping your popcorn. The real moneymakers are the studio owners and investors not the stars.

I remember when I lost my son, I had to return to work a week after. I thought I'd not be able to function, but I soon realized it was much harder physically and emotionally being at home with his things there and the memories. Unbeknowst to my co-workers, they were of more help than being home with family and friends.

[SouthpawSass]

I have to strongly disagree with you on one issue you brought up. Kids don't "prep" popcorn... they more or less use a swooping motion.

Sorry for the loss of your son. I couldn't imagine how terrible it would be to lose any one of my kids. Beyond excrutiating, I would think.

[ladylove114]

I too am sorry about your son. I also am sorry that you seemed to take my post totally out of context. I love celebreties as much as the next person and for the life of me I cannot see where you thought I was being critical of their paycheck. Never dreamed my post would end up getting a response about popcorn poppers at the theatre. My point is celebrities get praise for doing stuff us "normal" people do everyday.

[Tatiana]

This is news?? Is she the only person on earth to return to work after a sudden grief?

[seachild]

really!

[SharonB]

WIth the economy so bad right now, maybe they think it is news because she still has a job.

Other than that, I am sorry for her, but we all have to do this after losing someone close.

[cocolola]

CORRECTION ON THE TITLE PLEASE!!!!

[OtayPanky]

Take it easy.

They meant Joey Buttafuoco.

[NoSillyName]

Who the heck is "Joey" Richardson?

Perhaps you meant "Joely"?

[OtayPanky]

No, they meant "Buttafuoco".

[eatmypress]

at least spell her name correctly