Grief and Loss Counseling in Oakland, FL.

Grief & loss can knock even the strongest person on their knees. Those who are close to us try to comfort us with good intentions, but most of what they do and say do not help. They may actually make things worse with statements like, "you need to be strong" or "they are in a better place." We all have unique ways in which we grieve, and I am trained to help you grieve in practical ways that work best for you.

As an experienced Christian Counselor and ordained pastor, I’ve supported many men through the grief process. If you’re grieving, I will provide a supportive space for you to process your emotions. Because grief is a normal part of being human, I can’t take it away or rush you through it. However, I can help you identify barriers to grief, and help you prevent the grief process from becoming stuck. I know grief professionally. But I also know grief personally. Losing one of my best friends and my beloved grandparents was hard enough, but facing the untimely death of my father was, and is, a uniquely painful experience. If given the chance, I would be honored to help you process your grief.

With my experience in ministry, in counseling, and in life-coaching, I’ve helped men work through the complicated emotions around grief and loss. As men we feel pressure to be a “rock” for everyone else. Then our wives tell us to open up and feel our feelings. But do they really want to see us fall apart? Like many things, the truth is somewhere in the middle. Chances are that you’ve bravely put your feelings on hold to care for others, and regardless of what the world says, there’s love and nobility in that. And at the same time, you need a place to be real and work through the pain. If you’re ready to take the next step and face what needs to be faced, man to man, I’m here to help.

At the heart of our grief and loss therapy is offering our clients much-needed professional and pastoral care. Emphasis is placed of careful assessment and understanding of the crisis. Next, clients will be given the necessary support required to alleviate the crisis by both teaching and providing coping skills. As an ordained pastor and and Certified Clinical Christian Therapist, clients can, as it were, get the best of both worlds. In the next phase of counseling clients learn how to build their resilience by offering them empathy, love and compassion. The final phase of our therapeutic approach focuses on self-care through the realignment of one's identity as well as the creation of hope.

Losing someone or something is incredibly hard. I believe that one of the great myths that we are told is simply that “time heals all wounds.” Time can actually reinforce the pain of loss and it is important to mourn and grieve that which we no longer have. I am honored to partner with my clients on their journey through healing and finding peace after a loss. I look forward to the opportunity to work with you.

Losing a loved one or a relationship can be one of the most challenging events you will experience. I can help you turn this traumatic moment into an opportunity for breakthrough. This process includes redefining your relationship with a loved one, or re-discovering a piece of yourself that has been lost. I encourage you to embrace the reality that you can thrive even in the wake of grief or loss. The next season may bring renewal.

I have worked with many clients who are dealing with grief and loss issues, including children and families who have lost a loved one. I have also worked with trauma survivors and their families and loved ones, including victims and others impacted by or involved in the Pulse nightclub shootings. I encourage people to understand that there is no "wrong" way to grieve and that it is a process that takes time.

The majority of my sixteen years of professional practice have been in the areas related to grief and loss. I hold multiple certifications in the area and am a Fellow of the Association for Death Education and Counseling. I've taught on the subject in academia and travel across the nation offering seminars, workshops, and consultation concerning caring for those experiencing grief and loss.

Losing a loved one is emotionally and physically draining. Grief is experienced in many different ways and the healing process can take time. By working through memories and completing a grief trauma narrative individuals are able to process through their grief and enter acceptance into their healing phase. Grief counseling allows individuals to remember the positive times and visualize hope for the future.

Grief is hard. Grief is natural. Animals grieve. Grief is something we feel deep in our bodies and can be disorienting and destabilizing. Grief brings up questions about who we are, the world, the existence or goodness of God, and purpose and futility of life. Dealing with grief, especially when the loss is traumatic and unexpected, requires a slow and tender space to allow the grief to move through our body and to settle in our hearts with warmth and memory. I am here to help you grieve the loss of your loved one, experience, health , future or even your beloved pet. .

Jennifer assists the processing of grief with a variety of techniques. She has had success with grieving clients who used journaling, prayer, or talking to the deceased loved one.She uses the individual client as the basis for the techniques she recommends. Jennifer believes that all people grieve in their own unique way and time. Grief can take days or years depending on the connection with the deceased.

Handling loss sometimes feels impossible. Learning to live without the lost loved one oftentimes leads to feelings of hopelessness and fear of the unknown. I work with my clients to celebrate the ones we have lost as well as find ways to continue. I make sure that we don't go too fast in trying to "get over" the pain of loss. It's important to both celebrate our loved ones while we learn to move on without them.

My goal is to assist my clients with giving themselves "permission" to grieve. I often find that people struggle with this emotion, particularly when they are grieving the loss of a relationship, and not a death. While I caution clients that grieving doesn't have an expiration date, we can get "stuck" in the past and not know how to move past the pain of yesterday. I aim to teach clients healthy and productive ways to express and process their emotions, such as anger, sadness and fear, and find effective ways to help them let go so they can begin to create a new life on their terms.

Grief counseling helps people cope with grief and mourning following the loss of a loved one or due to major life changes that trigger feelings of grief (i.e. job loss or divorce). It provides a space for individuals to work through and process the complex emotions surrounding loss. Healthy grieving results in remembering the loss with a newfound sense of peace, rather than emotional pain.

The loss of someone we care deeply for is probably the most difficult thing we will ever face. You don't have to go through grief alone. I provide a safe and private place for you to work through the pain. Your life will never be the same again, but I will guide you through the grieving process and help you find meaning, acceptance, and the strength to move forward in a positive direction.

Grief and loss can be so difficult to manage and come out of nowhere. When we work together, we will gently learn the about the grief journey you are experiencing. As we learn your life experiences, we may find that some of the distress is rooted in early childhood trauma and attachment wounding. We will welcome all parts of yourself and learn about the challenging messages you may have grown up with that manifested into the distress you feel today. Disordered eating can be a messenger, an alarm telling you that it is time to heal experiences from earlier in life. I am trained in using EMDR, Emotion Focused Therapy and Expressive Arts to help you become your best self.

A lot of people run from grief work - I don't. I understand the pain of loss and I will help you through the darkness. Grief is a very profound and personal experience. The pain of loss never goes away completely - that person will always be an important part of your life and experience. I am happy to help you walk through that pain so that you are not alone in your grief.

Whether the loss of a person or a relationship, a job, career or a dream, grieving is an important component of healing. When we get stuck in grieving and aren't moving forward, having someone to come alongside us can be just what is needed. Grief that is not resolved can lead to physical and emotional problems that last a long time. There is help. You don't have to grieve alone!

Grey Matters International and the work of Kevin J. Fleming, Ph.D approaches issues of grief & loss through the lens of innovation----instead of growing the same neural networks responsible for the pain in weekly therapy sessions, we reset the brain to move forward quicker and efficiently by working on the stuck limbic system so as to empower the person with more success and traction. For no one wants to stay in a grief mode for too long; but when you dont include the brain in your work with someone, you risk describing the water to them while they drown and calling it success. Contact Grey Matters International, Inc now at kevin@kevinflemingphd.com or 877-606-6161

Dr. Hobbie would be honored to walk with you to find hope in your dark days of loss. He aspires to provide a safe accepting place to grieve in the face of significant sorrow. With a compassion for this particularly difficult road of life, he is committed to helping you find a voice to express your grief. He will walk with you as you consider how to reach out to God and others in your time of loss.

We help our client to heal and process grief and loss through holding safe space for them to work through difficult emotions and experiences in a supportive environment. Everyone grieves differently, but it can be very beneficial to receive support from loved ones and therapists as you cope with grief and loss. Collaborative therapy, Emotionally-Focused therapy, grief psychoeducation, and techniques such as EMDR (Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) and ART (Accelerated Resolution Therapy) can be especially helpful.

Grief and loss come in a number of different packages. Some familiar life transitions that involve grief include death, divorce, an empty nest, and job loss but this is by no means an exhaustive list. My approach to working with clients who are grieving is to initially create a safe space to hear their story and to normalize how they are feeling. Grief has no set path and is different for each person. The only thing that I know for sure is that the pain of loss is often unbearable and for this reason we often try to sidestep it. This may work for a while but eventually the feelings resurface in some way, either physical or emotional. Let's walk together as you make your way back.

Grey Matters International and the work of Kevin J. Fleming, Ph.D approaches issues of grief & loss through the lens of innovation----instead of growing the same neural networks responsible for the pain in weekly therapy sessions, we reset the brain to move forward quicker and efficiently by working on the stuck limbic system so as to empower the person with more success and traction. For no one wants to stay in a grief mode for too long; but when you don’t include the brain in your work with someone, you risk describing the water to them while they drown and calling it success. Contact Grey Matters International, Inc now at kevin@kevinflemingphd.com or 877-606-6161.