Grief therapy: psychological help to cope with goodbye

Grief therapy refers to the form of psychotherapy that has the objective of helping an individual to face and overcome a loss, mainly of a loved one, in a healthy way.

Since the death of someone we loveit's one of the most devastating experiences that we can suffer, and it is one of the greatest challenges that a person faces throughout his life, they are many men and women who need the help of psychology professionals specialized in this countryside.

Getting over the death of a loved one is a slow process

Statistics show that each year in Spain, around one and a half million individuals experience the loss of a loved one. This painful process, which can lead someone to a existential crisisIt takes a longer or shorter time to regain emotional balance.

Although many people cope with suffering and complete the process, approximately 10-20% may experience what is known as complicated or pathological grief: six months after death, the individual cannot overcome the grieving process. This disturbs the normal functioning of his life and behavioral, cognitive and affective disorders appear.

Typical feelings experienced by grieving individuals, and treated by psychologists and psychotherapists specialized in this type of therapy, include sadness, anxiety, anger, loneliness, guilt, isolation or confusion. Likewise, changes at the cognitive, affective and behavioral level also include feelings of disorganization and tiredness, trouble concentrating, sleep problems, appetite changes, nightmares, or constant thoughts about the deceased.

The goal of grief therapy

The purpose of grief therapy is to help restore emotional balance to patients through the counseling process in which the feelings, thoughts and memories associated with the loss of a loved one are addressed. Although grief can also occur for other types of loss (such as the loss of vital goals, ideal and relationships), this therapy is generally directed toward a positive adjustment after the death of a being Dear.

Grief therapy enables the patient to understand and recognize the normal aspects of the grief process, helps him cope with the pain associated with loss, feeling supported in such a delicate moment and of important changes in his life and to develop strategies to be able to overcome this situation in a healthy way.

In other words, grief therapy facilitates the subject's emotional expression about the loss, the acceptance of this traumatic event, adapting to life after such a painful situation and helps you cope with the changes within yourself and the environment around you after what happened.

Why is psychological help so important

To some extent, it is normal for people to experience enormous feelings of emptiness, pain, and confusion after the death of a loved one. However, when these negative reactions last a long time it can turn into something pathological.

In addition, there are certain circumstances in which complications can occur that make the grieving process abnormal. These circumstances can involve the loss of a child, or the loss of a loved one due to an accident or homicide, for example.

In these cases, more extreme responses to loss can be observed, depending on the capacity of the individual to cope with the situation, his personal resistance and the support system of which arrange.

Each person experiences grief differently. While some cope with this situation and manage to overcome it after a few months, others may feel so unable to cope. progress that require the help of a specialist to return to normal and restore balance in their routine daily.

How a Psychotherapist Can Specialize in Grief Therapy

Undoubtedly, grief therapy is also an important challenge for psychologists, who must respond to this need with training updated and that allows them to acquire the tools for the identification, prevention and treatment of situations of grief and losses.

Psychologists and therapists who wish to engage in this type of therapy, They must complement their university studies with some specialized training action in this ambit.

Grief therapy training

In different cities of Spain, training is given to specialize in grief therapy. These courses are intended to offer participants the knowledge and therapeutic tools necessary for grief therapy; and it helps them to adopt a correct attitude towards the patient, which is so important in dealing with this matter.

Students will be able to acquire skills to diagnose and differentiate normal grief from complicated grief and will learn about intervention techniques in psychological therapy for its treatment. Not only that, but they will be able to apply these intervention techniques, thanks to the methodology of the course, that combines theory and practice, and includes, in addition to role-play and session visualization, the supervision of cases.

This theoretical-practical training is designed for the assimilation of the aspects studied, and enables students to deepen their experience and analysis of clinical practice. In short, at the end of the course, students will be able to carry out an adequate diagnostic assessment on their own and will be able to design and implement practice a therapeutic intervention that takes into account the needs of the grieving patient, his personal characteristics and the context in which he has place.

• Related article: "The 8 types of grief and their characteristics"