“There is a tendency to underestimate how intensely distressing and disabling loss usually is and for how long the distress, and often the disablement, commonly lasts…There is a tendency to suppose that a normal healthy person can and should get over a bereavement not only fairly rapidly but also completely. But, loss of a loved person is one of the most intensely painful experiences any human being can suffer.”
– John Bowlby, Loss, Sadness, and Depression
The provision of compassionate, and, culturally responsive counseling for African American adults in states of distress in response to the death of a loved one days, weeks, months, or years after the loss, is my goal. My supportive, structured, integrative approach to grief and bereavement counseling is informed by my studies of trauma, grief and bereavement, my own experience with traumatic loss, and, my religious, spiritual, and, holistic wellness studies and practices. It includes Somatic and DBT informed mindfulness, distress tolerance, and, emotion regulation skills development, body movement and ecotherapy techniques, CBT informed emotional processing, and, practices from the Black Church religious/spiritual tradition.
If you are experiencing one or more of the following in response to the death of a loved one, my supportive grief and bereavement counseling services may help you to expand, deepen, and strengthen your current coping practices:
PHYSICAL (BODILY & MOVEMENT) REACTIONS
| Chest pain | Headache | Change in appetite |
| Heart palpitations | Back pain | Weight change |
| Shortness of breath | Stomach pain | Sleep issues |
| Tightness in throat | Nausea | Fatigue |
| Lightheadedness | Diarrhea | Restlessness |
| Dizziness | Constipation | Easily startled |
SENSATION & PERCEPTION REACTIONS
| Flashbacks of loved one’s death |
| Sense of unreality |
| Aimless feeling (trance-like state) |
| Hypervigilance |
| Nightmares |
EMOTIONAL REACTIONS
| Fear | Helplessness | Numbness/Flat affect |
| Anxiety | Meaninglessness | |
| Panic | Emotional lability | |
| Vulnerability | Irritability | |
| Abandonment | Guilt | |
| Feeling of emptiness | Anger |
COGNITIVE-BEHAVIORAL REACTIONS
| Self-harm attempt/ideation | Difficulty concentrating |
| Preoccupation with one’s own death | Slowed thinking |
| Avoiding places associated with loved one’s death | Forgetfulness |
| Avoiding talk of loved one’s death | Disbelief |
| Desire to retell story of loved one’s death | Denial |
| Self blame | Lowered self esteem |
SOCIAL REACTIONS
| Avoiding others | Disinterest in activities |
| Withdrawn | Lack of initiative |
| Hypersensitive | Socially hyperactive |
| Clingy | Relationship conflict |
Galatians 6:2 "Bear one another's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ."