Grief Therapy
Grief therapy helps the bereaved who have
complicated grief while
grief counseling is aimed at those without that condition.
The aim of grief therapy is to discover why the person cannot 'separate' from the decased. People experiencing complicated grief might have physical and/or behavior problems such as delayed mourning or extended grief.
Either in a one-on-one or group setting the bereaved talks about the deceased and tries to identify whether they have a realistic amount of emotion about the death.
The therapy helps the mourner to see that negative emotions can and do coexist with positive emotions about the deceased.
The mourner is helped to experience the 'normal' steps of grieving so that mourning can cease properly - accepting death has occured, living with griefs physical and emotional pain, adjusting to their new life without the one they love, and emotionally separating from them. It is important that these tasks are completed before mourning can end.
To help a mourner steps such as the following might be used:
- learn to experience, express, and adjust to grief-related changes
- find positive ways to cope with hanges
- create an ongoing relationship with the person who died
- keep healthy and keep active
- renew relationships and accept others might have problems empathizing with their grief
- creat a positive image of oneself and the world
Grief therapy also seeks to identify other hindrances to the grieving process such as any unfinished business with the deceased. Ultimately the mourner should see that the loss is absolute and a new life ahead is attainable.
Want more? Click here
