Grief and Loss Counselling in Port Alberni, BC.

Loss is something we experience and grief is how we deal with it. For many, this is a straightforward process that takes time to heal the pain that we feel from the realization that what we had or shared is now beyond our reach. For others, this is a process that extends beyond what is considered the normal amount of time given to grieve, and so how we learn to process our loss and grieve what we had becomes all consuming, or a delayed response that reaches out and affects everything else in our lives. With time and conversation, using different techniques, we will pave a new road forward where you learn to treasure your memories, knowing you are not alone and are comforted with the past.

My approach is to join with you to understand your experience of loss intimately and deeply in conversation with you. When we are joined with the pain, you will not have to feel it alone, even if the grief is only fully healed with time. I will help you make sense of your feelings and provide psychoeducation around the phases of grief, specifically to how these known phases can be meaningful to your current experience, what you are feeling, and how you can continue to honour the person, relationship, or thing that you have lost and find acceptance and hope.

Are you using alcohol, substances, or addictive behaviors to cope with grief and loss? Although they provide relief in the short term, their long-term effects on your relationships and health can make it even more difficult to cope. Through a compassionate non-judgmental approach, I help clients explore their relationship to grief and loss so that they can overcome addictive coping strategies. If you're looking for another way forward, feel free to reach out and we can set up a free consultation to discuss further.

In my grief counselling practice, I specialize in guiding individuals through the intricate emotions that emerge following the loss of a loved one or a significant life change. I provide a secure and nurturing space where you can openly express your feelings, delve into memories, and address the challenges associated with grief. As your dedicated counsellor, I am committed to fostering a compassionate and understanding environment, supporting you on your journey to healing and finding a path forward.

Counseling with Olivia through a trauma-informed perspective can provide a compassionate and supportive space for clients navigating grief and loss. Olivia prioritizes safety, trust, and understanding, recognizing how trauma impacts emotional and physical well-being. By focusing on the client’s unique experiences, she helps them process their pain, rebuild resilience, and find meaning amid loss. This approach emphasizes empowering clients to establish healthy coping strategies and restore hope in the aftermath of profound emotional challenges. Through a tailored, empathetic framework, Olivia fosters healing and growth, guiding clients toward a sense of peace and renewed purpose.

Are you feeling sad, anxious, angry, lonely, guilty, relieved, isolated, confused, or numbed out? Loss and grief is most often associated with loss of life, but it can also be central to the presenting problems and underlying issues that are brought into my counselling office by most of my clients. Death, divorce, relocation, immigration, job loss, relationship breakdowns...these are all losses that we need to work through. Talking about your loss and processing your feelings is a good place to start.

I provide a safe, welcoming space for you to speak about the loss of a loved one or other sources of grief such as divorce, retirement, a big move, or change in finances. Each loss is individual and unique and support can be given regardless of whether your loss is recent or happened some time ago. Conversations, questions, and techniques are tailored to your needs in session.