Grief And Loss

Grief is an emotion experienced by those who feel a sense of loss. It is a perfectly normal mechanism by which a person tries to cope with the void that manifested after losing something or someone that was important to him or her. Grief is not a simple emotion that is easy to comprehend. With the help of a counsellor, however, you can overcome grief to the extent where you can function as you’d like to.

Grief is a five-step process that begins with denial and culminates with acceptance. These stages – denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance – are commonly known as the five stages of grief.

The Stages of Grief

The first stage of grief is denial. Denial manifests as a way to temporarily cope with the event that caused the sorrow or loss. It can either be a conscious effort to deny reality to oneself or a natural instinct to do the same. . Some people may become stuck at this stage. It is at this time that help from a counsellor can be crucial.

The next stage commonly experienced is anger, which is a natural reaction when faced with something that a person cannot comprehend. This is also a difficult stage for people to cope with as anger may be misplaced due to feelings of denial.

The bargaining stage involves the false hope that the loss may be returned. Because this hope is false, people should find a way in order to overcome this stage, as when the false hope cannot be met, this can lead an individual to experience more grief.

Depression can occur with grief and at this stage it involves the slow and gradual acceptance of reality. It is not recommended that anyone try to cheer up the person experiencing this depression due to the fact that there must be time for the person to process the sad reality of life. Help should be sought from a counsellor if a person is stuck at this stage for a prolonged period.

Acceptance is the final stage; the person fully accepts the reality of the loss. The realization that life may never be the same helps an individual to cope with the overwhelming grief he or she may feel.

Overcoming Grief

As a way to overcome grief, a person must realize that although the loss is permanent, so are the memories. Although no new memories may be formed, the memories formed before the loss should nevertheless be cherished.

No one can handle the full brunt of loss all at once; they must find ways to cope with the loss. One way or another, Some clients find telephone counselling more anonymous than face to face sessions; it gives them the freedom to talk about their concerns without feeling embarrassed. A significant benefit of telephone counselling is the ease of fitting a phone call into your busy schedule as it facilitates out of hours appointment times. Contact us today to make an appointment for telephone counselling.