Grief, Loss, And Divorce – Breaking Out Of The Pattern
Loss almost always results in grief, and its intensity varies from person to person. Grief could be experienced at any of the following: a loved one’s serious illness, a miscarriage, a relationship breakup, death of a pet, losing a job, loss of a cherished dream, loss of a friendship, loss of financial stability, loss of health, or loss of safety after a trauma.
What Does Grief Look Like?
Grief happens in five stages – denial, anger, bargain, depression, and acceptance. However, they may or may not be experienced sequentially. Going through grief is a roller-coaster ride and may drain you out completely. Nonetheless, it is extremely important to work through it rather than to snap out of it suddenly.
If tackled in time, the loss can be dealt with without much damage to a person’s mental health.
When To Seek Professional Help
Professional counseling should be sought if you feel any of the following symptoms:
You feel that life is not worth living and you want to end it. This brings about a major sense of worthlessness and may lead to suicidal attempts.
You can’t stop blaming yourself for whatever happened. You constantly feel that you could have prevented it.
You don’t want to interact with anyone even after many weeks of separation. There is a continuous desire to stay away from people and you want to remain isolated.
You feel numb and deadened to the extent of not being able to think anything.
You can’t trust anyone anymore. This may need a bit of introspection. So ask yourself if you are gradually becoming cynical.
You cannot even run your errands normally. Completing a small task like cooking a meal for yourself has become difficult and you feel lost.
It is very important to turn any loss into a learning experience. Seek professional counseling before it is too late.
The loss of a loved one, or a bad breakup or divorce, can be very traumatic because they bring about a complete change in ifestyle and alters everything thing you do – right from getting up in the morning to going to bed at night. If not handled correctly or at the right time, grief, loss, and divorce can lead to dire consequences like emotional burn out, psychosomatic symptoms, or even suicide. It is imperative to seek help before anything irreversible happens.
If you believe you or a loved one may benefit from grief counseling, we invite you to contact us to set an appointment today. A sliding scale is offered to those in need.
