Grief and Loss Counseling in Contra Costa Centre, CA.

There are endless opportunities for loss in this lifetime- the loss of a loved one, a relationship, a job, a pet, lost potential, loss of a part of yourself through trauma. Whether your loss is recent or long-passed, it can have crippling affects on your relationships, your sense of security, and your sense of self. The loss you experience can leave you feeling lost and the grief that accompanies this can feel insurmountable. It's easy to become fearful that this will never change, to sink into the hopelessness you feel. It seems like an impossible task, but if you're on this site you have hope. Together, you and I can build on that hope.

Grief can be a difficulty beast to manage, a beast which can surface at any moment without warning and often comes in waves. When I’ve been grieving I’ve felt like I was in an emotional pong ball. With the aid of tools like EMDR CBT and guided visualizations I can help you to heal and leave the pain, loss, and grief in the past while holding on to the happy memories. Additionally, I can provide tools, coping skills, and other resources to help you manage this particular issue.

The topic of Grief & Loss covers a broad spectrum from loss of a loved one, a relationship, a job...even change. It helps to work with a caring and empathetic counselor who has the life experience to really "get" where you are coming from, to help you move to the other side of things so you dispell those acute feelings of loss and sadness. In addition to my 10 years of private practice experience in this area, I spent several years as a volunteer with the Centre for Living with Dying in Santa Clara, working with people suffering from feelings associated with horrible loss. With gender identity issues, another specialty of mine, there is also often a sense of grief & loss to overcome.

Grief and loss is, unfortunately, a normal part of living. There is no single "correct" way to grieve: different cultures and even individuals from the same culture grieve differently. The only consistent feature is that grief takes time. The most effective thing anyone can do for someone grieving is to be there—to listen, to empathize, to walk along with the grief. There is no "fixing" grief. But counseling can help prevent normal grief from developing into major depression or other mental health conditions.

You may be in the throws of it right now. Perhaps it is a death. Perhaps it is the end of a relationship. Perhaps it is a job or abandonment. There are many things that trigger our grief and loss. I carve out a sacred space that is just for YOU. You may need to cry. You may need to yell. You may need your pain to be seen. You may need to bargain or to blame yourself for a while. We can do this together while making sure you are on a path towards transformation. Having somebody that really listens and really gets it is the first step towards healing. If you are experiencing a deep grief or loss in your life, you owe it to yourself to go through this painful process supported.

I help clients navigate grief and loss by welcoming their deep feelings as a part of the process and navigating them carefully when they become overwhelming. Grief is a growth process like other difficult experiences, and I help clients find the resilience inside themselves to both honor their loss while getting stronger. By honoring the pain of the loss, we can move into a new phase of life that allows for thriving.

Grief is one of the most universal experiences we have. It is also one of the most painful. Grief can occur as the result of loss of a loved one, loss of a relationship, loss of a job or a role, even loss of our hopes and dreams. There are many brands of grief and each can feel crushing! While each of us responds to grief in different ways, there are techniques that help us to heal from loss. Therapy can help you to manage the emotional overwhelm that accompanies grief, not so that we can forget what we've lost, but so that we can manage that loss in a more functional way.

Have you recently experienced a death, the loss of a partner, a friend or pet? Grief, anger and difficulty functioning are normal but very challenging responses to loss. Most people tell themselves they must reach closure, but this takes more time than most people realize. Don't isolate or just tell yourself to be strong- lets work it through together.

Grey Matters International and the work of Kevin J. Fleming, Ph.D approaches issues of grief & loss through the lens of innovation----instead of growing the same neural networks responsible for the pain in weekly therapy sessions, we reset the brain to move forward quicker and efficiently by working on the stuck limbic system so as to empower the person with more success and traction. For no one wants to stay in a grief mode for too long; but when you don’t include the brain in your work with someone, you risk describing the water to them while they drown and calling it success. Contact Grey Matters International, Inc now at kevin@kevinflemingphd.com or 877-606-6161.

Whether it is the loss of a friend or family member or the ending of a marriage or relationship, the pain of loss is a powerful time to grieve and to reflect about the meaning of your own life. Therapy for grief and loss can offer the opportunity to change and grow in profound and deep ways due to the vulnerability of emotions that may normally be unfelt or unexpressed. It is an opportune time to get support and to share your internal world with another.

Grief and loss comes in all forms, from the death of a pet, to moving, to the loss of a dream, to the death of a child or spouse, and more. My clients discover grief and loss are a process (which includes: shock/disbelief, anger, blaming, depression/sadness, bargaining, and denial), and how to move through that process to an increased state of acceptance. As their state of acceptance increases, my clients experience an increase in forgiveness, healing, freedom and hope for the present and future. My clients see how they can begin to feel good about their life and future again.

There are losses so large that ordinary words seem to fail them, and yet finding words is often exactly what helps us survive them. If you're carrying a grief that feels too heavy or too tangled to speak about, you don't have to carry it alone or explain it perfectly. In our sessions, you can bring whatever is there: the sorrow, the memories, the things you wish you'd said, the parts of the loss no one else seems to understand. I'll help you give them a voice and make sense of an experience that may feel senseless right now. I've worked with many grieving people, and I've witnessed even the heaviest of grief resolve. Whenever you're ready, call me so we can work through your pain together.

Experiencing a loss, whether is a death or a relationship, can be one of the most difficult and life changing events one might go through in life. Grief comes in waves and can be overwhelming. Having a safe place to go express this grief and experience it can be very healing. Understanding how you might experience the grieving and loss process can be helpful when it feels like it is consuming you. Therapy can be a start to working through some of the feelings, emotions and thoughts about your loss. I will be able to support you through this process.