Grief Counselling

Grief is an experience of mixed feelings, including sadness, when a person experiences significant loss. The loss can be a person or special companion, but can also be a job, a pregnancy, a lifestyle, a promotion, or the loss of a friendship. 

 

When we lose what has become familiar, or lose something we are hopeful for, it is normal to have strong feelings of sadness, anger and fear.  The feelings can also be conflicting, for example, after a long illness, the loss of a loved one may also bring some relief.  Relief they are no longer suffering but also anger and sadness they could not beat the illness.

​

Especially with unique losses of pregnancy, health, job, or dreams, you may feel isolated in your mourning experience.  Often expected to "think positively" or "move on" before you are ready.

​

Grief means adjusting to a new and strange “normal”.

​

Remember: grief is as unique as the person experiencing it.  Elizabeth Kubler Ross identified 5 stages of grief but they are not “stops” on the journey of grief.  They are tools to help us frame and identify the mixture of emotions that can be involved in grieving. Many people respond to grief in 5 stages of denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance.  We experience these stages as we learn to live with what we’ve lost. Not everyone feels the same way, nor experiences all of the stages, nor the stages in the same order.  However, having help to understand these stages may make you better equipped to cope with life and loss.