People often look at me weird when I say I love grief work. We have a few specialties at our Hernando practice and grief is one of them. I love grief work because I have seen its beauty and power in my own life and in the lives of my clients.
Grief work is important because grief is inevitable. We will all experience grief at some point in our lives. Additionally, if you expand your idea of grief to include things such as job loss, ailing health or even a major move (perhaps across the country) you have probably already experienced grief in your life even if you have not lost someone close to you.
Grief unfolds all around us in many different ways over the course of our lives. Grief can even involve the living. For example, we may grieve an ailing parent diagnosed with Dementia, a family member addicted to drugs or a friend with a life altering diagnosis like muscular sclerosis (MS). We may grieve people who are still alive, but show up differently or not at all emotionally for us.
If you are alive, you will grieve someone or something at some point in your life. So, learning how to grieve well is essential. And having support while you grieve is also essential. This is where therapy comes in.
A certified grief informed therapist offers the space, empathy and expertise you need to support you while you grieve. There is no right or wrong way to grieve; however, over the years research and theories on grief have expanded and it can be helpful to learn about these from a caring counselor in a safe environment. Most importantly, a good grief clinician will let you grieve how and when (length of time) you need. Your therapist will walk alongside you every step of the way as you explore your thoughts and feelings about your loss.
We are honored to walk alongside the grieving because we know grief work is important and inevitable. Additionally, we love grief work because it reveals the strength and beauty of the human spirit. Much like trauma (another one of our specialties) grief work demonstrates the ability of individuals to face tragedy and still finding meaning and hope on the other side. This is why I can say I love grief work. Time and again I have had the privilege of witnessing people deal with unimaginable loss and persevere to create lives of meaning and purpose.
If you are grieving or even anticipate grieving (what we call “anticipatory grieving” when we know a loss is coming) we can help. Our Hernando certified grief informed therapists would be honored to walk alongside you on your grief journey. Please call us today at 662-506-3836 to make an appointment and begin your path to healing.
