There's No Right Way to Grieve
Compassionate support for navigating loss at your own pace.
What is Grief & Loss Support?
Grief is the price we pay for love, and it's a testament to the significance of what you've lost.
Grief and loss support is specialized therapy designed to help you navigate the complex, deeply personal experience of losing someone or something important to you. At Alba Wellness Group, we understand that grief is not a problem to be solved or a timeline to follow; it's a natural response to loss that deserves to be honored and supported.
Loss comes in many forms: the death of a loved one, the end of a significant relationship, job loss, health changes, the loss of dreams or expectations, or major life transitions. Each type of loss can bring its own unique form of grief, and we're here to support you through whatever you're experiencing.
Our grief support recognizes that everyone grieves differently. There's no "right way" to grieve, no timeline you should follow, and no pressure to "move on" or "get over it." Instead, we help you learn to carry your grief in a way that allows you to continue living and finding meaning, while still honoring what you've lost.
While we can't take away your pain, we can walk alongside you as you learn to carry it with grace and find ways to honor both your grief and your capacity for continued love and joy.
What to Expect from Grief & Loss Support
✔ Creating Space for Your Story
We'll begin by creating a safe space where you can share your story of loss without judgment. Whether your loss was recent or long ago, sudden or expected, we're here to listen and understand your unique experience.
✔ Honoring Your Relationship
We'll help you explore and honor your relationship with what you've lost, celebrating the love, the memories, and the impact this person or thing had on your life.
✔ Navigating Practical Challenges
Loss often brings practical challenges like making decisions, handling responsibilities, or dealing with other people's expectations. We'll help you navigate these challenges while protecting your emotional well-being.
✔ Understanding Your Grief
Grief can bring unexpected emotions, physical symptoms, and changes in how you relate to the world. We'll help you understand that these responses are normal and find healthy ways to cope with them.
✔ Supporting Your Ongoing Journey
Grief doesn't end, but it can transform. We'll support you in learning to live with your grief in a way that honors your loss while allowing for continued growth and connection.
✔ Finding Meaning & Connection
Over time, we'll explore how to find meaning in your loss and maintain connection with what you've lost while also building new sources of meaning and joy in your life.
Goals of Grief & Loss Support
✔ Process the complex emotions that loss brings, including sadness, anger, guilt, relief, or numbness
✔ Develop healthy coping strategies for managing grief-related symptoms like sleep problems, appetite changes, or difficulty concentrating
✔ Address complicated grief when loss becomes overwhelming or prolonged in ways that significantly impact daily functioning
✔ Navigate social challenges such as well-meaning but unhelpful comments, changed relationships, or feeling isolated in your grief
✔ Find meaning and purpose in your life after loss, including ways to carry forward the legacy of what you've lost
✔ Create new sources of joy and connection while still honoring your grief process
✔ Honor your relationship with what you've lost while learning to live without their physical presence
✔ Develop rituals and practices that help you maintain connection with what you've lost
✔ Rebuild identity and sense of self when loss has fundamentally changed how you see yourself or your future
OUR APPROACH TO GRIEF & LOSS SUPPORT
Our grief support is grounded in compassion, respect for your unique journey, and understanding that healing doesn't mean forgetting or "getting over" your loss.
✔ Person-Centered Care: We follow your lead in terms of what you want to talk about, how quickly you want to move, and what aspects of your grief need the most attention. Your grief journey is uniquely yours.
✔ Culturally Responsive Support: We understand that grief is deeply influenced by cultural background, religious beliefs, family traditions, and community expectations. We honor your cultural context while supporting your individual needs.
✔ Continuing Bonds Approach: Rather than encouraging you to "let go," we help you find healthy ways to maintain ongoing connection with what you've lost while also engaging with life in the present.
✔ Meaning-Making Focus: We help you explore how your loss fits into the larger story of your life and how you might find or create meaning from your experience of grief.
✔ Practical and Emotional Support: Grief affects both your emotional well-being and practical daily functioning. We address both aspects, helping you manage symptoms while also handling the practical challenges that loss can bring.
✔ Trauma-Informed Care: Some losses involve traumatic circumstances. When needed, we integrate trauma-informed approaches to address both the loss itself and any traumatic aspects of how the loss occurred.
Frequently Asked Questions
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There's no timeline for grief. Some people find their acute grief symptoms lessen within months, while others may grieve intensely for years. What matters is whether your grief is allowing you to function and find some meaning in life, not how long it lasts.
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Yes, grief can involve many different emotions beyond sadness, including anger, guilt, relief, numbness, or even moments of joy. All of these emotions are normal parts of the grief process.
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Both responses are normal. Grief affects everyone differently, and your emotional expression may not look like what you expect or what others expect from you.
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Unfortunately, others often don't understand grief and may offer unhelpful advice. We can help you develop responses to these situations and find support from people who better understand your experience.
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Grief doesn't follow a timeline, and sometimes losses affect us more intensely years later due to anniversaries, life changes, or other triggers. It's never too late to seek support for grief.
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Yes, we support people grieving all types of losses, including relationship endings, job loss, health changes, miscarriage, pet loss, and other significant life transitions.
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Thoughts of death are sometimes part of grief, but if you're having thoughts of harming yourself, please reach out immediately. Call 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) or go to your nearest emergency room.
You Don't Have to Grieve Alone
Your love doesn't end when your loss begins.
