Grief and Loss Counselling in Melancthon, ON.

Coming to terms with feelings of loss and making sense of it can be a painful process. Grief is a common emotional and sometimes physical response that you feel when you experience loss after a disaster or a traumatic event. Grief can have you feeling: shock, disbelief, denial, anxiety, distress, anger, periods of sadness, loss of sleep and a loss of appetite. In session I will help you address some of the reactions as you process your new reality. Some people recover from grief usually within 6 months, but for some others, it may take up to a year or longer.

Hope Centered Counselling understands first hand the pain associated with losing someone, losing a fur baby, and the loss when something changes in your life. A relationship changing, a change in career, or moving somewhere new can come with significant losses. We get it, and we want to help you walk through the experience, and hold space for the hard parts.

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 searing pain.

Grief and Loss are different for everyone. We respect that people go through this process at their own speed and in their own way. We help them explore and grieve using a combination of modalities such as narative therapy and emotion focused therapy. Loss can be that of a family member, friend, pet, or it can also be a historical loss such as lost childhood that the client is now ready to deal with.

I approach clients working with grief and other kinds of losses with compassion and understanding. I know first-hand what it is like to endure the loss of a very special person and I have also faced other types of crushing losses in my life. My goal in therapy is to help clients fully experience their loss while, at the same time, carry on with life and find small joys whenever possible. I help them to understand that the road to feeling better may be a long one, but there are proven ways of thinking and being that will help them adapt to their new reality with resilience and hope.

In my practice you will find a safe place to talk about and work through pain, and the feelings of sadness, confusion, guilt, shame and anger that often accompany the experience of grief and loss. Moving through grief and loss is your personal journey that takes time and is experienced uniquely from your own perspective. I provide therapy, counselling and and support for people who have lost a loved one such as a family member, friend or colleague whether through death or the ending of a relationship, those who have lost an important pet or animal companion or people who have experienced a loss that includes a loss of a job or personal identity.

After loosing someone close to you it is often hard to find emotional balance. Therapy can provide you with a safe space to process your loss and the difficult emotions that often follow. Feeling sad, lonely, angry, and confused are all normal and healthy emotions to experience during this time. Working with a therapist can help you through these tough emotions as well as how to feel normal and happy again.

The people who have touched our lives, family members, and special friends (pets) we love are important to us. When anything risks those we love, we also feel distressed. Our deep connection to them means we experience this incredible emptiness when they die. Though we know that death is normal, natural, and inevitable, this knowledge does not eliminate the emotional pain of our loss. Through my losses and the losses of others, I have learned that life is over, but it is never finished. If you are experiencing a recent loss of a family member, friend, or special friend, I am available to journey with you through this loss. Schedule a free 15-minute consultation to see if we are a good fit.

Grief and loss are deeply personal experiences, and everyone’s journey through them is unique. In our sessions, I provide a compassionate and non-judgmental space to explore your feelings and memories. Whether you're dealing with the loss of a loved one, a significant life change, or another form of loss, we'll work together at a pace that feels right for you. My approach is to support you in finding your own path to healing while validating your individual experiences and emotions. Reach out to schedule a free 15-minute consultation to begin the process of understanding and coping with your grief.

With Gestalt therapy the five tasks of mourning, are supported: (1) To accept the reality of the loss, (2) To experience the pain of grief, (3) To adjust to the environment in which the deceased is missing, (4) To withdraw (some) emotional energy and reinvest it in another relationship, and (5) To find a place for and maintain a continuing bond with what we lose, however not in any specific order. A gestalt therapist supports the bereaved with an emphasis on a "loving authentic presence and communication that allows expression of EACH other’s personhood" so that feelings are honored and explored at the clients own pace. The here and now is emphasized and that is what leads to support/change

Coming to terms with grief and loss is one of the biggest challenges we have to face in this ,oh so human, experience. You can develop a new kind of relationship with your distress experience. With support and compassion you will extend your capacity beyond what you ever thought possible, connecting with a deep inner strength and also with those around you.