Grief Counseling

Grief is Normal and Healthy
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Woman Grieving at headstone Grief Counseling

Navigating Loss Together: Grief Counseling

Loss shapes us — whether it’s the death of someone you loved, the end of a relationship, the loss of a job, or another life change that matters deeply. If you’re feeling adrift, numb, overwhelmed, or disconnected from your former sense of self, you’re not alone — and you can find your way toward healing and meaning again.

What Grief Can Look Like

Grief isn’t just sadness. It can show up in many ways — in your body, your mind, your daily life.
  • In your body: fatigue, tightness in the chest, disrupted sleep or appetite, physical pains with no clear cause.
  • In your emotions: numbness, guilt, anger, longing, relief — sometimes shifting in the same hour.
  • In your mind: inability to focus, moments of dissociation or feeling like you’re “outside of life,” or stuck replaying memories.
  • In your world: losing interest in what used to matter, avoiding places or people because they feel weighted by memory, or carrying a sense of “nothing will ever be the same.”

If any of this hits home, it’s not because you’ve done something wrong. It’s because grief is working its way through you.

Why Therapy Helps With Grief

Grief has its own logic — but when it begins to overwhelm your everyday life or drag on longer than you expect, something more might be helpful. Therapy offers a safe space to:
  • Validate your experience and normalize the pull of loss. Grief is unique, but some of the stages and responses are shared. Counselors trained in bereavement recognize how loss affects people across the body, mind, relationships, and meaning.
  • Help you process, not bypass, your emotions. Holding feelings in or “pushing forward” too soon can lead to stuck grief or complicated grief—therapy guides you through toward integration.
  • Build coping tools and support your nervous system. Whether it’s mindfulness, grounding practices, expressive work, or restructuring routines, helping your system rest and recover supports grief work. 
  • Reconnect with meaning even amid loss. Grief therapy often involves exploring identity, values, legacy, and what you want your life to look like now—even if it looks different than it once did.

My Approach to Grief Counseling

In Johnson City, TN and via secure telehealth across Tennessee & Virginia, I provide client-centered, trauma-informed grief counseling. Together, we’ll tailor the pace and focus to your story.

Here’s how the process often unfolds:
1. Stabilization & safety. Especially if loss was sudden, traumatic, or accompanied other life disruptions.
2. Exploration of the loss and its impact. We’ll map how grief shows up for you—what you’ve lost, how you’ve changed, where you feel stuck or isolated.
3. Processing & integration. Using evidence-based methods (like CBT, ACT, mindfulness, possibly EMDR if trauma is involved) to help your nervous system, thoughts, and emotions shift.
4. Re-engaging with life. We’ll help you explore how to live with the loss—not just “move on.” That might involve building new rituals, reconnecting to values, finding meaning, and redefining your identity in light of what’s changed.
5. Sustaining resilience. Ensuring that the changes hold, preparing for triggers (anniversaries, reminders), and supporting ongoing growth rather than just “back to baseline.”
Grief Counseling Johnson City TN

What Sessions Look Like (Telehealth)

    • We meet in a secure video space from a place you choose — whether in Johnson City, the Tri-Cities region, or anywhere in Tennessee & Virginia where telehealth services are available.
    • Initial sessions may focus on your unique grief story, coping skills, and establishing safety.
    • Mid-phase sessions dive deeper into the emotional, cognitive, and relational impact of your loss.
    • Later sessions often focus on legacy, meaning, sustaining growth, and integrating the change into your ongoing life.
    • Between sessions you’ll be given small, doable practices (e.g., memory rituals, grounding routines, creative expression) that fit your daily life—not idealized goals.

    FAQ about Grief Therapy

    • How long will grief therapy take? 
    There’s no timeline. Some find significant relief in a shorter series of sessions; others benefit from longer work, especially if the loss was traumatic, cumulative, or complicated by other issues (anxiety, trauma, burnout). We will regularly review progress and decide together what’s best.
     
    • Is grief therapy only for death loss?
    Not at all. Grief can come from many kinds of loss: relationship endings, job/livelihood changes, health losses, identity shifts, or any “something important has changed” moment. Recognizing disenfranchised grief matters. 
     
    • What if I’m still functional but something feels “off”?
    That’s a valid place to reach out. Sometimes grief lurks underneath exhaustion, irritability, avoidance, or relational disconnection. Therapy can help you engage more fully in your life again.
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    • What if trauma or previous losses are involved?
    Great question. Many people in grief also carry trauma or unresolved losses. In those cases, we’ll integrate approaches like EMDR or trauma-informed methods to address both grief and its underlying layers.

    TAKE THE FIRST STEP TOWARD HEALING

    Your mental health matters. Let Dimensions Counseling Center in Johnson City, TN help you regain balance and well-being with compassionate, expert care.
    Request An Appointment