Frequently Asked Questions
What types of grief does the app support?
Grief Companion is built for all forms of loss, not just bereavement. You can use it for:
- The death of a loved one (including pregnancy loss, infant loss, and pet loss)
- Relationship endings — breakups, divorce, estrangement, friendship loss
- Career loss, unemployment, and retirement
- Identity transitions — leaving behind a role, community, or version of yourself
- Health diagnoses — your own or a loved one's
- Anticipatory grief — grieving losses that are still unfolding
- Regret and missed opportunity
- Any other loss that feels real to you
During onboarding, you select the grief type that fits your situation. You can add more types or change your selection at any time in Settings.
Do I need to create an account to use the app?
No. All core features — journaling, Memory Book, grief assessments, coping prompts, and the education library — work without an account. Your data is stored locally on your device.
If you want to sync across multiple devices, you can sign in with an account. An account is also required for Plus and Pro subscription features.
What is the "multi-dimensional grief model"?
Most grief resources treat grief as a single feeling, or describe it as a set of stages you move through in order. Research and lived experience show it is more complex than that.
Grief Companion tracks seven dimensions of your grief experience:
- Emotional Intensity — the weight of the feeling right now
- Daily Functioning — how grief is affecting everyday life, sleep, work, relationships
- Meaning-Making — your ability to find or seek purpose and understanding
- Connection — feelings of isolation versus belonging and support
- Acceptance — your relationship with the reality of what has happened
- Identity — how the loss is reshaping who you are
- Hope — your sense that the future holds something for you
Assessments ask a short set of questions and map your responses to these dimensions. Seeing where you are strong and where you need support gives a fuller, more useful picture than a single score.
How do I write a journal entry?
- Tap the Journal tab at the bottom of the screen.
- Tap New Entry (the plus button in the top right corner).
- Choose between Free-form (write anything, no prompts) or Guided (the app offers a prompt tailored to your grief type).
- Write your entry.
- Select one or more emotion tags — color-coded chips representing feelings like grief, anger, numbness, guilt, love, hope, and more.
- Tap Save.
Your entry is saved locally and appears in your journal timeline. You can search, filter by emotion, and review past entries anytime.
What are grief dimension assessments?
Assessments are structured self-reflection exercises that measure how you are doing across the seven grief dimensions (see above). Each assessment asks eight questions using compassionate, non-clinical language.
After completing an assessment, you see:
- A visual summary showing each dimension on a spectrum
- A brief interpretation of your results
- Optional reflection prompts based on where support may be most useful
You can take assessments as often as you like. Over time, the Assess tab shows how your experience is shifting — which can be meaningful and encouraging even when change feels slow.
Assessments are a self-reflection tool, not a clinical diagnostic instrument.
What is the Memory Book?
The Memory Book is a place to preserve the people, relationships, and experiences you are grieving. You can add:
- Photos from your device's camera roll
- Written stories — memories, moments, things you want to remember
- Dates — when something happened, an anniversary, a milestone
- Collections — organize memories into groups (for example, by person, by time period, or by theme)
Memories appear on a chronological timeline. The Memory Book is designed to be a gentle, living archive — a place you can return to when you want to feel close to what you have lost.
Are crisis resources available in the app?
Yes, always. A crisis resources banner is permanently displayed on the Home screen. Tap it at any time to access:
- Crisis and suicide prevention hotlines
- Grief counselor and therapist directories
- Text and chat-based crisis support options
These resources are available without an account, without a subscription, and without any additional steps.
Grief Companion is a self-help tool. It is not a substitute for professional mental health care. If you or someone you know is in crisis, please contact a professional immediately.
What do I get with Plus? With Pro?
Free tier (no cost) includes the complete core experience:
- Daily grief journal (free-form and guided)
- Memory Book with photos and stories
- Grief dimension assessments
- Coping prompts tailored to your loss type
- Grief education library
- Self-care routine tracking
Plus ($3.99/month) adds:
- AI-personalized prompts based on your journaling patterns and assessment results
- Voice recordings in the Memory Book — record your voice alongside photos and written memories
- Cross-device sync so your journal and memories are available on all your devices
Pro ($8.99/month) adds everything in Plus, plus:
- AI companion conversations — a patient, always-available companion for processing difficult moments
- Complicated grief detection — guidance when your grief patterns suggest you may benefit from additional professional support
Core features are never removed from the free tier. You are never pressured to upgrade to access the tools that matter most.
Can I use the app offline?
Yes. All core features — journaling, Memory Book, assessments, coping prompts, and the education library — work fully offline. Your data is stored on your device.
Cross-device sync (a Plus feature) requires an internet connection to sync. The app will sync automatically when you reconnect.
Is my data private?
Your journal entries, memories, and assessment results are stored locally on your device by default. Without an account, no data is transmitted to external servers.
If you sign in and enable sync, your data is transmitted to and stored on Edgeless Media servers to enable cross-device access. Edgeless Media does not sell your data or use it for advertising.
You can delete your account and all associated data at any time from the Settings screen.
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