Anchored Serenity Therapeutic Solutions, PLLC
Fanisha Calvert, MS, LCSW
Many People Have A Tough Time Dealing With Grief
Grief is the emotional and physical reaction you have when you cope with the impact of a loss. Grief can be an enormous emotion that can feel like it’s taking over your life. It can be complicated to cope with on an ongoing basis and hard to navigate the emotions that it stimulates within. Coping with the loss of someone or something that is significant to you can be one of life’s biggest challenges. It can be painful, lonely and emotionally draining when you experience loss. Whether it’s the loss of a job, death of a loved one, decline in your health or a loved one’s health, loss of a relationship or loss of a friendship – any event that makes you feel as though something has been taken away can trigger grief.
Grief Counseling can help you find Relief
Most people will experience grief or loss at some point in their lives. Grief is a very natural response to loss and everyone deals with grief differently. You may find it difficult to eat or sleep or continue with your usual routine in the days, weeks or sometimes years following the death or loss. People who are grieving may experience complex emotions that may be difficult to understand. While there is no right way to process grief, when grief prevents you from doing the things you use to do (going to work, socializing, sleeping regularly, etc), it may be beneficial to work with a grief and loss therapist such as myself.
Myths and facts about grief
MYTH: The pain will go away faster if you ignore it.
Fact: Trying to ignore your pain or keep it from surfacing will only make it worse in the long run. For real healing, it is necessary to face your grief and actively deal with it.
MYTH: It’s important to be “be strong” in the face of loss.
Fact: Feeling sad, frightened or lonely is a normal reaction to loss. Crying doesn’t mean you are weak. You don’t need to “protect” your family or friends by putting on a brave front. Showing your true feelings can help them and you.
MYTH: If you don’t cry, it means you aren’t sorry about the loss.
Fact: Crying is a normal response to sadness, but it’s not the only one. Those who don’t cry may feel the pain just as deeply as others. They may simply have other ways of showing it.
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MYTH: Grief should last about a year.
Fact: There is no right or wrong timeframe for grieving. How long it takes can differ from person to person. Grief doesn’t go away — we just learn how to manage it differently day by day.