Grief and Traumatic Loss
Treatment & Consultation Offered by Dr. Grabau
There is a wide range of emotions that one can experience during grief and none of them are wrong. What is important through the grief process is that all of those emotions are acknowledged and respected, no matter how difficult they are to face. You might experience feelings of:
- Loneliness
- Guilt
- Shame
- Confusion, shock, disbelief
- Numbness
- Anxiety
- Anger/Irritability
- Helplessness
All of which are perfectly normal responses to grief. Don’t shy away from your feelings and responses to your loss; they are important to your healing!
Secondary Losses
A significant loss doesn’t always mean that someone has died. You can experience loss in many other ways such as:
- Friendship
- Support System
- A Job
- Identity
- Change in Dreams & Future Plans
- Intimacy & Affection
All of which deserve to be grieved!
Traumatic Loss
Loss can be traumatic when:
- A loved one’s death was violent
- The deceased experienced suffering or bodily harm/damage
- The death was preventable or unjust
- You were threatened at the time of the deceased’s death
Grief Therapy
While grief is uncomfortable, and we are often told to just deal with or suppress it, therapy is a healthy outlet to help you process all the uncomfortable stages and emotions of grief.