What is Grief Counseling?

If you are struggling to cope with grief and are needing some answers to relieve the pain, look no further. This blog answers the question, “What is Grief Counseling?” along with sharing the types of grief you can experience, what grief can look like, and how grief counseling can help you.

 

Struggling with grief alone can be challenging. There can be a lot of conflicting feelings to process, ranging from sadness, anger, frustration, confusion, and more. When we leave our grief untreated, we are susceptible to having increased stress and greater difficulty in coping on a regular basis.

 

Grief counseling in Simi Valley, CA pairs you with compassionate and understanding grief therapists. Grief therapists acknowledge that grief is a complex emotion and can be experienced in a range of situations.

 

If you find yourself struggling with grief, consider calling us today for a free consultation at (805) 774-1506. You do not have to go through this alone.

 

What is Grief Counseling: What can you experience grief over?

Grief is not limited to only experiences of having loved ones pass away, such as family members, friends, or cherished pets. Grief is the response to a loss, in which a strong bond or affection has been formed. Of course, no longer having someone or something you cherished no longer around, can cause deep sorrow. Alongside this, you can experience grief in other situations, a few of these include:

 

• The end of a relationship. Grieving the end of a relationship can be difficult. You are essentially grieving the loss of the life you built with your partner as well. When you once had a regular routine, whether through conversations, daily activities, and coordinating time together, that is no longer a part of your life. 

 

• Having a loss of hope. You can grieve with a loss of hope. This can be within yourself or a particular situation you are in, such as financial. There may also be instances, such as battling chronic illness or experiencing a miscarriage, that has left you feeling at a dead end. 

 

• Life changes and transitions. Examples of this could be moving somewhere new, leaving a beloved job, going to a new school, and much more. You may have found comfort in a previous position in your life. Now that you are a transition or change, this can be hard to process. 

 

• A loss of an opportunity, idea, or goal. Perhaps you were excited and ready to follow through with a job or school offer, which suddenly fell through. You may have had goals in mind to exercise again, yet you’ve encountered a serious injury that leaves you immobile. Something important was once in your hands, and has slipped away.

 

Grief counseling in Simi Valley, CA provides you with a space to safely and effectively process grief. Being able to focus on your journey to recover from your grief is essential and will help make the process more effective.

 

Further instances you can experience grief over include losing abilities, realizing a relationship will not change, accepting limitations, or other scenarios that are rooted in loss or difficult terms to acknowledge and accept.

 

What is Grief Counseling: What can grief look like? 

Grief does not present itself in the exact same manner. It varies and is no one-size-fits-all. You may find that grief produces different reactions in everybody. Some experience more anger and irritability throughout their day. They can present as more frustrated and stressed, not presenting as sorrowful and down. 

 

Others may present as experiencing despair and sadness. Experiencing grief can even trigger individuals to fall into a depressive state, where they feel no motivation to talk to others, leave their home, or get up from their bed. You may also experience numbness, guilt, fatigue, and many other emotions.

 

The five stages of grief include denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. You can fluctuate between these stages, not necessarily following them in order. You may notice experiencing two or more stages at the same time. This can be stressful and overwhelming to cope with on a daily basis.

 

You can address your symptoms of grief in individual counseling in Simi Valley, CA with a professional grief therapist. From there, you will work collaboratively to find ways for you to cope and manage your grief. 

 

At New Leaf Marriage and Family Therapy we are here to help you address and work through grief in a way that feels supportive, grounded, and accepting. We will hold space for the growth and self-understanding that often comes from processing grief, ensuring that you feel safe while discussing difficult topics.

 

What is Grief Counseling: What can you expect in grief counseling?

In grief counseling, you can expect to accept the reality of your loss. It can be difficult to accept and process what has happened, without gentle and direct support. You will begin to work through the pain of grief and the psychological effects of your loss.

 

Adjusting to life without your loss can be difficult. Whether this is adjusting to life without the presence of a loved one, adjusting to change and transitions, or adjusting to a recent lost opportunity or goal. You can expect to find ways in grief counseling to maintain a connection to your loss, while finding ways to move on with your life.

Your grief therapist will guide you to talk about your loss and what your loss meant to you. What was your relationship to the person that you have lost? How did you lose them, and how has that impacted you? You can expect to describe your emotions and feelings in great detail – based on your current comfort level. 

Finally, you can expect to learn that grief is a normal process of life, and it is expected to happen after an important loss. You can begin to normalize what this process has been like for you, and that you are not alone in going through this experience.

Read all about what you can expect in Grief Counseling by clicking here.

Working with a trauma-informed therapist is crucial in grief counseling.

 

What is Grief Counseling: How can grief counseling help you?

Grief counseling will help you in a number of ways. The first way is that you will have a safe, non-judgmental space where you can address your feelings. You will find ways to identify and cope with difficult feelings when they come up. Building coping strategies will help, especially if there are tough days like holidays, anniversaries, or birthdays.

 

During grief counseling, you can also identify any behaviors that may be harmful for you on a daily basis. This can look like ruminating on the past, rather than opening your perspective to a more accepting or neutral mindset. You may struggle to accept what has happened, and need support in working through acceptance. 

 

You can also learn how to develop new relationships one day or find a new path for yourself. There may be some goals to eventually meet someone new one day and get back into the dating pool to find a companion. You may also want to explore other interests of yours and start a new journey, but are unsure of where to begin and are lacking the confidence to start.

If you are interested in getting started in grief counseling in Simi Valley, read our blog on Therapy: Where to Start, where we share four essential tips that make the process seamless and easy for you. We also share tips to help you decide whether Online Therapy or In Office Therapy would be best for your needs.

 

If you live in the Ventura County or Los Angeles County area and believe you or a loved one is experiencing grief, please contact us to learn more about the ways we can provide support.

 

Consider calling our therapy group at (805) 774-1506 for a free consultation!

 

Seek out a validating, safe environment with us today. We will help you get to where you want to be. Our therapists provide teen therapy, individual adult therapy, LGBTQIA+ therapy, anxiety therapy, depression therapy, family therapy, and more in-office in Simi Valley, CA.