Grief and Loss

Grief is your emotional reaction to a significant loss. A loss can be anything including a pet, a loved one, a job, a relationship or moving. Anticipatory grief is grief we experience when expecting a loss. You may feel anticipatory grief for a loved one that is sick and dying or for a move or divorce that you know is coming.

Grieving is the process of emotional experiencing and life adjustment you go through after a loss. There is no right or wrong way to grieve because grief can be different for everyone even when you are perhaps mourning the same loss as others around you. There is no “right” or "normal and expected" period of time for grieving. Some people can adjust to huge changes and losses within several weeks or months. Other people may take a year or more, particularly when their day-to-day life has been dramatically changed or their loss was traumatic to them and unexpected.

If you are experiencing significant sadness and/or anxiety 2-3 weeks or more after a loss, contact a therapist for help. Counseling can help you learn the skills you need to manage your grief over your loss. Often therapy will focus on helping you to establish social support, self care skills and ways to begin to get back to parts of your life you can still enjoy. Often the passage of time is also an important part of recovering from a loss too.

For more information on our counseling services and scheduling, please contact us to schedule today.