Grief Therapist in Chicago
The grieving process can be unpredictable - one minute you’re focused on a task and being productive and the next minute you feel like you can’t function. It’s normal to be flooded with happy memories and then, seemingly instantaneously, plagued by survivor’s guilt. For some, you might feel like you don’t even know who you are anymore - as though your loved one was you and was your life.
Do any of these sound like you?
- You feel like you don’t know how to live without your loved one
- You wonder who you are anymore
- You find yourself wishing for just one more day or one more conversation
- You feel guilty that you are still alive
- You find yourself “making deals with the devil” to bring them back
- You worry that if you feel “okay” your relationship with your loved one wasn’t “real”
People are uniquely special. Relationships are uniquely different. Every loss is uniquely impactful. The way you experience grief depends on many factors such as the age of your loved one, nature of the death, relationship dynamics, and the role the person played in your life.
On the contrary, the nature of the support around you when you are grieving does consistently impact the process. Still, many well-meaning supporters can feel apprehensive or unsure how to respond, leading to no response or inadequate support. This is often accompanied by shame that leads the person to withdraw support even further.
Finding an effective grief counselor can make all the difference in your grieving process. Your therapist will understand the grieving process, recognize the need to show unconditional positive regard for you and your feelings, and not invalidate your experience. Although no grief counselor is capable of eliminating your grief, they can help you feel less alone in it. Our grief therapists would be honored to help you find compassion for yourself and your experience.
If you’re looking for a grief counselor in Chicago, Tandem Psychology may be the solution for you.
Grief can disguise itself in a variety of expressions, including:
- Irritability
- Numbness
- Guilt
- Worthlessness
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Shame
- Problems Concentrating
- Exhaustion
- Insomnia
Grief can impact every part of our lives. This is why it’s important to have someone that can hold the space for you to share your memories, thoughts, and feelings. It’s not uncommon for people close to you to not want to talk about your loss anymore, which can make the grieving process incredibly lonelily. The experience of loneliness with your grief, actually extends the grieving process. Our therapists for grief understand this reality. We are committed to be with you in your pain, honoring your memories, working through your grief, and helping you to forge new identities in the wake of your loss.
Grief counseling offers a way to heal, but also to transform. When we lose those we love, our very humanity can feel shaken. We can experience sadness, numbness, confusion and even act erratically. Finding compassion seems impossible. Therapy for grief can encourage us to go deeper, fully understanding our love and loss, and ultimately making meaning out of our lives.
If you’re looking for help navigating the grieving process, please schedule an in-person appointment at our Lakeview offices or a telehealth appointment to meet virtually. We have a team of exceptionally trained and experienced psychologists, social workers, and clinical counselors ready to help.