Dealing with a significant loss can be one of the most difficult times in a person’s life.
Feelings of loss are very personal, and only you know what is significant to you.
People commonly associate certain losses with strong feelings of grief. These can include: Loss or death of a partner, family member or close friend, Serious illness of a loved one, Relationship breakup, Loss of a physical ability and Loss of financial security.
Sudden events like crimes, accidents, or suicide can be traumatic. You may experience symptoms such as sleep disturbance, nightmares, distressing thoughts, depressed mood, social isolation, or severe anxiety.
When experiencing grief, it is common to: Feel sad or depressed, angry, frustrated experience anxiety, nervousness, or fearfulness, feelings like you want to “escape”, feelings of guilt or remorse, feeling numb and experience lack energy and motivation.
In Grief Counselling therapy allowing yourself to have any feelings about the loss and being patient with the process and can help you move forward in the healing process.
You may want to experiment with these ideas or create a list of your own. Talking to friends who have dealt with loss in the past can help you identify new ways of coping. Only you know what works best with your personality and lifestyle.
One way to examine your own style of coping is to recall the ways you’ve dealt with painful times in the past. It’s important to note that some ways of coping with grief are helpful, like talking to others or writing in a journal.
Others may be hurtful or destructive to the healing process, like abusing substances or isolating yourself. Healthy coping skills are important in resolving a loss and helping you move forward in the healing process.