Bereavement & Grief Counseling

Bereavement and grief counseling have a relationship but refer to two different aspects of the loss experience, usually loss through the death of someone else. Grief is a process that is associated with bereavement; grief counseling comes into play in specific circumstances involved with these loss responses.

Grief Counseling

Grief counseling involves a type of therapy with the goal of assisting people who have sustained a loss to work through the resulting emotional effects of that loss in a normal, healthy way, as detailed on the website minddisorders.com. Most people work through grief naturally on their own over a period of time, but some have responses that require or at least would benefit from professional attention.

Bereavement

Bereavement refers to a post-loss state of loneliness and sadness. It is related to but separate from grief, which describes the linked set of behaviors and feelings connected with such a loss. Typically, the triggering event for these emotional states involves loss by way of the death of another closely affiliated person such as friend or family member; however, other types of loss can also set off such responses. The loss of a pet provides one example, as do divorce and even the moving away of a close friend or family member, as described on the website athealth.com.

Responses

Expressions associated with grief and bereavement include such sensations and emotions as shock, anxiety, anger, depression, agitation, sadness, loneliness and guilt. Any of these responses for an interval of time after the loss qualifies as a normal response. Such responses as severe guilt, feelings of worthlessness or thoughts of suicide exceed the normal response and may indicate a situation that calls for grief counseling.

Phases

The grieving process has three defined phases through which a person normally passes. In the first stage, he experiences shock and denial. In the second phase, she has realized that the loss actually has occurred ... or in some cases will occur in the instance of extended terminal illness. As a result of this full realization that the loss is real, "here to stay" so to speak, he experiences distressful, disturbing emotions such as sadness that can include guilt. Experts describe this collection of emotions as a sense of anguish. Finally, she reaches a resolution of the bereaved feelings, possibly still including guilt over the situation, and she finds a return to usual activities possible or more bearable; this final phase can last several months.

Characteristics

Besides sensations and emotions, certain characteristics accompany the grief process in some people or even the same person in different bereavement events. These characteristics include such experiences as social withdrawal, crying spells and insomnia. Although not unusual in normal grief, the extended presence of responses such as insomnia, crying spells or severe depression warrant the seeking of grief counseling, particularly since these may signal a problem best treated through medication, a status a professional counselor has the ability to evaluate.

Providers

A bereaved person can seek grief counseling from a variety of professionals who have a background in dealing with grief issues. Those in the helping professions who may offer grief counseling include clergy, social workers, pastoral counselors and psychologists.

References

• Athealth: Bereavement and Grief
• Minddissorders: Grief Counseling