Grief Counseling
A safe place to process loss & define your new normal.
Holistic, Christian counseling & wellness for women & teen girls in Cary and throughout NC
Your world has turned upside down.
You don’t know what to do. Grief comes in waves and the tangle of emotions doesn’t make sense. Everything you once knew is different and you wonder where to go from here. The world keeps going, but you don’t want to be a part of it. The sadness and hopelessness are so loud you can’t see any joy in your life.
You look back and wonder if you did the right thing. Feelings of guilt are overwhelming. You ask: “Did I spend enough time with him?” “Did I say the right things?” “Did I get the right help?” “Am I being punished?”
It’s a struggle to concentrate or make decisions. Getting your daily needs met seems impossible. You look in the fridge for cereal and try to find milk in the pantry. It feels as though you’ve lost your mind.
Spending time with loved ones seems overwhelming so you avoid them. You’d rather stay in bed. You feel you’re a burden - like the depressing friend who brings everyone down. So you pretend things are okay. People you thought would stand by you have disappeared or give trite advice like “just get over it…it’s been long enough.” But you can’t. You don’t want to. You don’t know how.
You may want to turn to your faith for strength, but may feel numb or angry toward God. You wonder “If God is so good, why would He allow this to happen?” “Is God real?” “Does God love me?”
Grief ambushes you when you least expect it. Sometimes just going through the grocery store you’re overcome by seeing your loved one’s favorite cereal or ice cream. Holidays and anniversaries are brutal. There’s an empty seat at the table and you wish you could just skip the day.
Have Any Questions? Send Us A Message!
There are many types of loss.
Death (human or a pet)
Divorce or loss of a relationship
Becoming an empty nester
Infertility and/or miscarriage
Loss of identity
Health crisis
A special needs or prodigal child
Job loss
TAKE HEART
There is no shortcut for grief.
Over time, therapy for grief will allow you to both process your loss and create your new normal.
You will:
Ride the waves of grief without becoming overwhelmed
Learn to cope with unhelpful advice & expectations
Tolerate, and even come to enjoy, social activities
Engage in self care
Identify safe relationships
Meet your suffering with kindness rather than condemnation
Recognize how joy and sorrow can coexist
Grieve while you still do the things you love
Define your new normal
imagine if you…
Feel less lonely
Find peace in the overwhelm
Feel connected & engaged
Develop a new normal
be encouraged
Grief counseling can help you pick up the pieces
A safe and supportive presence with a therapist specializing in grief can provide the space you need to process grief. This is a judgment free zone with zero expectations for you to have it all together. Feeling heard, valued, and loved will allow the natural process of grief to unfold. We will help you process the complex and ever-changing emotions and define what you want life to look like going forward. A holistic approach uses mental, physical, social, and spiritual (upon request) practices to cope with grief and loss.
Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) are particularly helpful with grief and loss. They will help you learn to understand the relationship between thoughts, feelings, body sensations, and actions. This increased awareness will help you identify unhealthy thought patterns and behaviors. You will come to accept and not fight, run away from, or feel guilty about hard emotions. It will help you begin to see your thoughts and feelings simply as thoughts and feelings-not as absolute truth. Then you don’t have to act on them. This recognition can take you off autopilot and allow you to live in truth and intention instead.
We’ll work together to identify the false beliefs you have about yourself, others, and the world. We’ll help you make connections between these false beliefs and your loss. Then we can align your thoughts with truth and live in accordance with that truth. The stories in your head begin to change. Rather than beating yourself up, you’ll develop kindness and compassion toward yourself.
We’ll also focus on daily practices that will support you in your grief. This includes mindfulness, journaling, movement, sound nutrition, social connectivity, and spiritual practices. When the waves of grief come, you will gain the skills to cope, such as recognizing activating events, breathing practices, changing conditioned patterns of the mind, aromatherapy, and other grounding techniques. If desired, you’ll have faith-based coping tools, such as scriptures, affirmations, and prayer.
Each session will leave you with new and tangible skills to help you feel empowered to cope with grief and loss.
Grief counseling with Be Still is…
Grieving on your own timeline
Process the loss in a safe space
Freedom to experience ALL of the conflicting emotions of grief
Over time, developing a new normal
Grief counseling with Be Still is not…
Stuffy or formal
Expecting you to perform
Losing it during your session and not being able to function the rest of the day
Expecting you to get yourself together for the convenience of others
faqs
Common questions about grief counseling
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There is no timeline for grief and loss! It’s a personal journey. Being seen and heard will help you feel less burdened and more free. Over time you will notice the waves of grief getting smaller and coming farther apart.
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You’re not alone! Many people feel this way. An important aspect of counseling is talking about the hard things but then making sure you leave our sessions able to go about your day. We won’t discuss anything you’re not ready to.
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Schedule a complimentary 15-minute consultation! We’ll talk about what you need support for and determine if we’re a good fit.
Learn More
i’m just not sure if i should move forward with counseling
Common barriers for women seeking grief counseling
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This we understand! It may or may not be a good time to start, depending on your needs. Sometimes it takes a few weeks or months after the loss to gather enough footing to start counseling. When you’re ready, we’re here.
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We’ll discuss what’s challenging, but keep it within your “window of tolerance.” That is, we’ll talk about that hard stuff, but not take you past the point of no return where you can’t function the rest of the day. This is a safe place.
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You’re right, no-one gets through this life unscathed. Even though grief and loss are universal, YOUR specific loss is unique. It important to process with a person not related to the loss so that you can lay it out there and not tip toe around the hard reality of your grief.
WE want you to know:
You don’t have to suffer alone
We are grief counseling specialists. Feeling heard, valued, and cared for will allow the natural process of grief to unfold.
