Grief is an inevitable part of life. However, the loss of a close relative or friend is always less expected and a difficult scenario to avoid even when death was expected. In particular, a death stirs up a series of complicated emotions, while its reality darkens every moment of life.

Truth be told, no one knows how to prepare to pass through the moment of grief. It is true that time is the best healer. We come into terms with the loss and try to embrace a few adaptive mechanisms as we navigate through the stages of grief. But what if you got a few moments of counselling that would guide you through each moment of grief?

Here’s how counselling can guide you through the stages of grief:

Stages of grief

There are five stages of grief. While these stages of grief may manifest in different orders, they may last for days, weeks or months depending on the coping mechanisms and the support structures availed to the bereaved individual. While some people may experience each stage, others are never keen to know which stage they are dealing with.

The stages of grief include denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. In the denial stage, the bereaved lacks the will to admit the death. Later in the anger stage, the individual starts realizing the loss followed by the bargaining phase where the bereaved tries pleading with the environment to restore the departed soul back to life. The depression stage is the most tempting as the bereaved may go into psychological shock. The individual finally gets into terms with the loss in the acceptance stage.

The role of counseling

Counselling could be everything you need to move through the five stages of grief and live a normal life after a loved one has departed. Grief counselling in the denial stage will help you achieve the state of acceptance and appreciating why the death has occurred. Similarly, counselling in the anger stage will be fashioned in a way that helps the bereaved to adopt healthy ways of coping with rage by getting the feelings out.

An experienced grief counsellor knows how delicate an individual will be when moving through the bargaining stage after lose of a loved one. As such, they will establish a professional atmosphere that will drive the bereaved towards facing the reality and accepting that the deceased is gone and will never come back to life. However, the techniques adopted by the grief counsellor in the bargaining stage will be tailored in such a way that they are harm-averse and do not push you back to the anger stage.

Similarly, grief counselling in the depression stage will aim at availing the emotional support and encouragement you need to pass through the storm. They’ll prepare you on how to deal with stressful emotions and may turn to religious support to ensure that you live normally. Conversely, the counsellor will present you with all avenues you need to live with freedom in the acceptance stage. here, the counsellor will advise you to surround yourself with emotionally supportive people as you pursue your life.