Uniquely You Counselling & Clinical Hypnotherapy | Grief / Loss
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Grief / Loss

Grief is a normal, healthy reaction to painful loss in our lives. It is not a disease or pathological condition.

 

The loss can come in many ways:-

  • Death of a loved one or a pet,
  • Loss of a job
  • Loss of health – Chronic disease or terminal illness
  • Loss of relationship – Divorce or separation
  • Loss of separation from a location or from people – Moving home or children leaving home
  • Loss of fertility
  • Loss of safety, trust, control or faith

 

The more significant the loss is to that person the more intense the grief tends to be.

 

Grief affects each one of us very differently and there is no right or wrong way to grieve.

It can affect our emotions, beliefs, thoughts, physical health, behaviour, and our self identity.

It can cause disrupted sleep, changed eating habits, reduced concentration and irregular energy levels.

 

There are a range of emotions, such as shock, sadness, anger, anxiety, denial, disbelief, regret, guilt, relief, numbness, overwhelm, isolation, irritability, that you may go through and not necessarily in any particular order.

 

It may continue for weeks, months and even years.

We have a tendency as humans to try to avoid the painful feelings, as they are sometimes too much to bear, however this can be detrimental to the healing process.

It is important to allow yourself to feel the difficult feelings and acknowledge that is it ok to feel these feelings of sadness and emptiness.

You are not weak for feeling these things.

Some helpful ideas of what to do if you are experiencing grief:-

 

  • Give yourself permission to feel the emotions. Let it out.
  • Spend time with people who empathise with you and support you.
  • Talk to someone about your loss; sharing the burden of how and what you feel can lighten the load.
  • Get professional help, from a counsellor who specialises in grief, if you feel you need more support than friends or family can provide
  • Keep life simple. Only do what you feel like doing.
  • Ask people for the help you need as they often just don’t know what to do or say.

Some information has been adapted from the following resources:-

Beyond Blue (2016) Depression, Beyond Blue, Retrieved on 23 June 2016 from  https://www.beyondblue.org.au

Australian Centre for grief and bereavement (2016) Grief Information Sheets, retrieved on 23 June 2016

https://www.grief.org.au