Grief and Loss Counselling in Richmond Hill, ON.

I have personally suffered a great loss in my life, as a result, I feel that I am uniquely qualified to work with clients who have also suffered similar tragedies. Textbook grief therapy is not enough. My experience has helped me formulate a deep understanding of the particular fears, sadness, and problems one faces while dealing with a profound loss.

I, like many of us, am no stranger to the feelings of grief and loss and I am aware of how deeply unique and personal these experiences can be. The way that I imagine being part of your journey through these moments is by holding your hand and walking through this unknown path together, while discovering new aspects and meanings of the self along the way. I will check in with you to ensure that we are walking this path on a pace that is most suitable for you, for there is no need to rush during this time. Contact me to schedule a free consultation to ensure we are a good fit.

Every loss changes your personal puzzle. Re-integrating that loss into your life and challenging yourself to move forward can be a very daunting and difficult experience. Processing the loss, forgiveness, mindfulness, and healing are major components to my work in this area. You can move forward. It just takes time, effort, and re-integration. There are no quick fixes--just meaningful changes and transformations.

I walk with my clients in their journey of grieving, through their difficult time as they try to understand their loss and their feelings. I offer them a safe space and time to understand their feelings for their losses. There are many other kinds of losses in our lives. We may lose our loved ones, our health, our physical mobility, our relationships with others, our dreams or our jobs. These are losses which we may not realize that we need to grieve. We may feel that something is not quite right.

Experiencing the loss of an individual in our lives and learning to grieve in a healthy and patient manner can be difficult for many individuals. Loss is not only restricted to an individual or object but can also be letting go aspects of ourselves which no longer serve us. I approach Grief and Loss issues using an empathetic and patient approach so that the individual can learn to integrate into their everyday lives.

I open up space for clients accept and share their grief, since many people don't feel comfortable doing so, especially with others. I help clients to work toward resolving unresolved grief and express their unexpressed grief. I help clients to honour & give space to their grief. In today's rushed world, people often don't take adequate time to honour their grief & sense of loss. I help clients to try and honour what their lost loved one would have wanted for them, or, sometimes to take back their life back from a lost loved one who didn't value or validate them. I work to prepare clients for grief to be lifelong, though that doesn't mean that it will always have the same intensity.

Having practiced for 20 years, and spent 6 years in a Trauma Centre in Ontario, I have gained a great deal of experience in working with Grief & Loss. The griefwork I have done has been with adolescents, adults and families. I allow my clients to work through their traumatic issues, loss, and grief in a compassionate, gentle, safe manner while assisting them to achieve greater relief from pain over time.

If you are dealing with the loss of a loved one, whether it be from death, divorce, or other circumstances, you are on a very painful journey, one that takes some time to traverse and is not easy. It can be helpful to have someone like myself walk with you on that journey and honour your feelings of loss and sadness and, when you are ready, to help pick up the pieces and continue to live a productive and satisfying life. That does not mean you leave the past behind but that you find a way of integrating a new life with the old. Reaching out is a sign of courage and strength.

We all know that death is inevitable but that does not take away the pain that we feel when a loved one is suddenly gone. I think it is also important to look at ways to handle birthdays, anniversaries, and other tough moments that will also inevitably come up for you. If you have lost someone close to you recently or in the past this loss can bring up many feelings and thoughts you may not understand. I want you to be able to see what role grief is playing in your life-good and maybe even bad.

There are many forms of loss we encounter in life - relationships, places, work, meaningful engagements, roles at work or at home, etc. The deeper any of these mean to us, the harder it can be to process the loss. I offer a place to sit with loss, to explore what's going on with it, to learn what's normal & what to expect in this type of journey. Grief has it's own schedule, it's important to honour this, and to grieve well.

Often the loss of a loved one, pet, item, or aspect of a person can lead to intense feelings of grief. At times when the loss is surrounded by traumatic events this grief becomes complicated. Clients will often find that reprocessing these traumatic moments that led to the loss will help them be able to cope with any feelings that come up. They may find that their memories are no longer haunted by feelings of anxiety, extreme sadness, or loss of hope.

Grief and loss are significant life experiences that can be difficult to manage. I have heard from many that sometimes it seems like the extreme sadness will not leave them. I work with such clients to try and make space in their life to experience positive emotions along with the sadness. Grief is very individual and some clients desire help to "move past the grief", while others do not agree with this. I work to meet clients where they are, to optimize their day to day life experiences according to their own individual hopes. In addition, I help clients to find meaning in their experience of grief and loss, honour the life of their lost loved one, and manage the related difficult emotions.