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Grief Counseling
Grief Counseling
Sometimes the grief felt after the death of a loved one, whether it be a spouse, other family member, friend, or pet, is so painful that it is difficult to heal from the experience. In addition to grief felt after the death of a loved one, the expression of grief can also be felt in many other areas of live including life transitions, job loss or changing jobs, illness, relationship concerns, financial problems, and substance use. If you find that you are experiencing emotions and behaviors such as the following, you may benefit from participating in grief counseling:
Experience anger, profound sadness, guilt, or a lack of self-concern.
Feel stuck in the grieving process with no sense of relief.
Experience intense surges of grief that occur with no warning.
Feel numb to all that is going on in life.
Experience difficulty finding meaning in anything you do.
Feel like others misunderstand you.
Feel very alone and isolated.
By engaging in the counseling sessions, you have an opportunity to move through the pain and suffering related to your loss so that you can learn to find new meaning for your life. You will gain the necessary tools to:
Identify, accept, and express all of your feelings associated with the reality of your loss.
Work through the pain of grief
Define and adjust to life afresh with new meaning for yourself and purpose in your life in your own time-frame.
Honor yourself at each stage of the counseling process.
Ultimately, finding new ways to go forward and create a new story for your life. (In the case of the loss of a deceased loved one, be able to draw on the inspiration of your deceased loved one.)
Trauma & Abuse
Trauma & Abuse
Karen has completed intensive training regarding the effects of trauma in our lives, including current enrollment in a two year Archetypal Pattern Analyst certification program through the Assisi Institute: The International Center for the Study of Archetypal Patterns.
Trauma comes in many forms, including sexual, physical, emotional, and religious abuse. Situations that cause a great deal of shame, embarrassment, and humiliation keep individuals stuck repeating the same negative themes. These themes or patterns include behaviors that you have played out over and over. If you have experienced abuse that prevents you from having happy, healthy relationships with others, you may want to consider counseling. The following are other examples of how you are affected by a trauma in your life:
Feel stuck and don't know what to do.
Repeat patterns in your life that are not healthy ones.
Lack the ability to experience a wide range of emotions (feel numb to much of life).
Feel powerless, lack trust in the world, do not feel safe.
Abuse, for example, drugs or alcohol.
Experience guilt and inferiority.
By engaging in the counseling process, you have an opportunity to frame your loss in healthy, productive ways. You will gain the necessary tools to:
Feel safe in the world by naming the abuse.
Gain a sense of control in your life.
Transform the traumatic memory.
Learn to stand up for yourself in healthy ways.
Career Change
Career Change
Experiencing a job loss or change in career direction can be extremely stressful. If you are experiencing any of the following, you may benefit from seeking professional help as you move through this significant transition.
Tremendous amount of anxiety because your future is uncertain.
Fear that you will not survive, limited sense of security.
Decreased sense of self-esteem.
Lack of motivation to explore what is next for you.
Sense of overwhelming sadness and lack of energy
Find yourself in a state of shock.
Having trouble finding meaning in anything you do.
Experiencing a sense of Anger and resentment (sense of betrayal).
Having worked in a variety of positions including the business world for many years, I understand the dynamics that develop as layoffs occur and companies change direction in operations. At other times, dynamics arise resulting in abrupt job loss. Because career satisfaction has been such an important part of my own life, I understand and can empathize with individuals who find themselves at this crossroad and don't know which way to go.
Areas you may focus on during counseling include:
Honor your concerns related to your specific employment issues.
Acknowledge your feelings.
Pay attention to the thoughts you say about yourself and your place in the world.
Allow yourself to be open to the possibilities, instead of the only seeing the limitations.
Give yourself permission to pursue your dream even if you need to find a job very soon.
Remain grounded by creating effective coping skills.
Gain clarity about what is truly important to you in your next job.
Choose a career in which that you are excited/passionate.
Learn to respond instead of react.
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