Loss and bereavement
Bereavement is another of those universals that can inflict such tremendous pain that it impacts on people physically, in their behaviour and very sense of functioning. Many major losses, such as loss of physical integrity follow the same grief process, and because we grieve differently, this process can be extremely isolating.
Grief is often explained as the price we pay for attachment, yet there is nothing right about having to undergo such acute pain…, and proper support, including counselling, can help relieve pain.
Empathy and feeling understood can break a sense of isolation, which, if left unattended, could further intensify distress levels. My role as a counsellor is first to help people identify and express difficult emotions, which in itself brings relief. It is then to assist them so they reach a delicate and very personal balance through the hard process that is grief work. While there are no easy shortcuts, achieving that balance, partly relies on identifying skills and activities that provide temporary breaks from the pain of major loss.
Counselling offers hope at many levels, as we now know that at the end of the bereavement process people start opening to new life experiences. Many find “an enduring connection with the deceased”. In fact when faced with major loss and when provided with necessary support and resources most people don’t just return to a previous level of functioning, but become more mature and wiser, more able to appreciate each present moment and ultimately to take responsibility for their life and their happiness. This is what I want to foster in counselling.
Grief is often explained as the price we pay for attachment, yet there is nothing right about having to undergo such acute pain…, and proper support, including counselling, can help relieve pain.
Empathy and feeling understood can break a sense of isolation, which, if left unattended, could further intensify distress levels. My role as a counsellor is first to help people identify and express difficult emotions, which in itself brings relief. It is then to assist them so they reach a delicate and very personal balance through the hard process that is grief work. While there are no easy shortcuts, achieving that balance, partly relies on identifying skills and activities that provide temporary breaks from the pain of major loss.
Counselling offers hope at many levels, as we now know that at the end of the bereavement process people start opening to new life experiences. Many find “an enduring connection with the deceased”. In fact when faced with major loss and when provided with necessary support and resources most people don’t just return to a previous level of functioning, but become more mature and wiser, more able to appreciate each present moment and ultimately to take responsibility for their life and their happiness. This is what I want to foster in counselling.