Loss can be one of life’s most stressful events. Grief and bereavement are how you experience loss, and they can envelop you in powerful emotions, call into question things you thought you knew, and have an enormous impact on your life.  

 

Grief occurs when you lose someone or something that is important to you. Grieving can be a response to:

• The death of a family member, friend, or pet.

• Coming to terms with a medical illness/diagnosis for yourself or for someone you care about.

• The end of a pregnancy.

• Witnessing yourself and others age, and face death.

• Life transitions.

• The loss of a relationship or going through a divorce.

 

Feelings, thoughts, reactions, and challenges related to grief are very personal. Family members often grieve in different ways, which can lead to tensions in an already stressful time. You may have thoughts or feelings that seem at odds with each other. You may also notice that your grief changes over time, possibly resurfacing around holidays and other life milestones.

 

Grief responses are a part of the human experience, and nobody grieves in quite the same way. Grieving and healing take time, but that doesn’t mean that you need to go through the journey alone. Grief counselling can support you in expressing emotions, making meaning of the loss, coping with the changes in your life, healing the pain of loss, and embracing your life more fully.