Grief and Loss
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What is Grief?
A normal and natural reaction to a loss of any kind
The conflicting feelings caused by the change of or end to a familiar pattern of behavior
The feeling of reaching out to someone who has always been there, only to find when you need them, they are no longer there.
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What is Loss?
Did you know there are over 43 losses that can lead to grieving? Some examples include; death of loved one or pet, divorce, retirement, moving, financial changes, legal problems, health problems, empty nest, loss of trust, loss of autonomy, loss of control, loss of faith, loss of fertility, and more.
Grief is one of the most profound feelings of the human experience. Grief is something we will all encounter multiple times in our lives, yet no one wants to talk about it. Many of my clients have been told to “be strong”, “get over it”, or “stay busy”. Many have been given arbitrary deadlines of when they should try to find “normalcy” or when they should no longer be impacted by grief.
One of the most common misconceptions about grief is that time will heal it. I so badly wish I could say this were true, but time only passes, it doesn’t heal you. While grieving is natural and normal, the sense of heartbrokenness you feel can sometimes be unbearable. Many times those who are grieving are forced to face this alone. Recovery from grief can feel impossible.
Recovering from grief does not mean that you forget about the person or pet who died, it doesn’t mean that the incident that caused the grief didn’t hurt you. And it most certainly doesn’t mean that you will never cry over this again, or that you will never be sad again. Recovery is taking action to acquire new skills that will allow you to deal with the loss, and find new meaning without fear of being hurt again.
Recovery is finding a way to honor who or what you have lost while you heal along the way.