loss is a normal part of life...
but it doesn't mean that it's easy
Grief & Loss Counseling in the Indianapolis Area
You wake up panicked in the middle of the night.
Reality hits you; it wasn't a dream.
How could this have happened?
You feel certain that today will be just as terrible as the day before.
You're beginning to think that your life as you knew it is gone forever.
Here's the good news:
Your overwhelming emotions don't have to go on forever.
You can come to terms with your loss & and find a “new normal.”
I can help guide you through the darkness...
You can find light and life again.
Let me give you the straight talk express regarding grief:
We live in a grief illiterate society...
So, let's blow grief's cover...
If no one ever talked about how overwhelming, lonely, and frightening grief can be, you can’t know what you are feeling is a normal part of grieving.
Therefore you may think something is horribly wrong with you.
Nothing is wrong with you.
What’s wrong is that- in our society- grief is hidden in plain sight…
It’s something that isn’t talked about or acknowledged.
How can you find a 'new normal?'
Let's talk about 6 solid
Evidence-Based
grief treatments
1
Talk Therapy
Talk openly and honestly about your loss
2
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Reframe your unhelpful thought patterns
3
Mindfulness
Engage in breathwork & journaling
4
Prolonged Grief Therapy (PGDT)
Combines Attachment Theory with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
5
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy
Incorporates Mindfulness, Acceptance & Action
6
Ritual
Remembering & Mourning Through Activities
Grief isn't limited to death.
Here are other situations that cause grief:
- Job loss
- Divorce
- Difficult diagnosis
- Separation of a loved one due to employment, education, or choice.
- Decline in health or abilities
- Estrangement from family or close friends
- Military deployment
- Financial losses
- Life transitions (good or bad)
FAQ
While there are no guarantees in life, the answer is most likely YES! There are several evidence based treatments that alleviate the sting of grief and help you move forward.
Grieving can be a painful process. Some people successfully navigate the feelings of grief on their own. Other people get stuck in the grief. They want to be better, but it feels impossible.
Grief counseling was created for people that struggle to cope after a loss. It was created to help people navigate the loss in a healthy manner.
Here are some of the goals of Grief Counseling:
- Accept the Loss: Coming to terms with your loss is the first step. Denial or trying to suppress the loss doesn’t work. Initially these coping mechanisms allow you to pace your overwhelming emotions. At some point, it ceases to be an effective method of dealing with grief.
- Feel the pain: I wish there were a way to sidestep this, but it is essential for forward movement to face the pain.
- Integrate the loss into your life: Working to live with your loss, while also reorienting your life.
- Maintain your connection to the loss: Again, suppressing or denying the loss will only keep the despair deep within. Remembering the positive, reminiscing about what was wonderful is an important step.
Great question! There are many types of grief.
- Ambiguous Loss: This is experienced when a person is still alive but there is cut-off in the relationship. Or, when a person is missing and it is unknown where they are or if they are alive.
- Complicated grief: Profound grief that lasts longer than a year would fit in this category. People struggle to function, feel hopeless and don’t want to engage with others.
- Maladaptive grief: This type of grief is easy to identify. When people cope with grief in destructive ways- such as drugs, gambling, etc, it is maladaptive and self-destructive.
- Broken heart syndrome: Yep, this is a real thing. It’s when grieve manifests physically in the body. Grief releases stress hormones which can cause physical issues.