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Bereavement & Grief Counseling

The Mourning After

YOUR HEART ACHES AS YOU WALK THE DIFFICULT PATH OF GRIEF AND LONGING

There’s a good chance that you feel emotionally overwhelmed.  No one seems to understand how deeply you suffer, how you long for your loved one, how nothing in life seems to have purpose or meaning any more without them.  You feel hurried by others to “find closure,” “move on,” and “find peace” – but how do you do that when your identity and heart are gone?  On top of all this, you have to find some way to function in the world when all you can do, or feel you need to do, is shut down.

We accept and honor all of that – the defeat, the futility, the inability to imagine a future that seems remotely appealing or possible without your beloved. Grief counseling is meant to be a place where you tell us and show us all about your suffering and yearning as you also teach us all about your loved one.

It’s your space to be and feel just exactly as you are, and to be in the presence of hope that things will improve with time.

We are incredibly well versed in walking alongside individuals as they mourn their beloved:

  • Child(ren)
    • Miscarriage
    • Stillbirth
    • Infant death
    • Child death
  • Partner
  • Parent
  • Friend or loved one
  • Pet

We also work with those struggling from:

  • Traumatic loss
  • Exposure to death

Though we desperately wish we could, we cannot take away your pain – your broken heart.  What we can and will do, however, is share our heart, knowledge, skills, and time with you.  We promise to listen without judgment and to give you our full attention: to be someone you feel safe sharing the sacredness of your loved one and grief with.  When you want to talk, cry, rage, or mourn, we want to listen to anything and everything you have to say – to provide a completely open and accepting space for your grief.  Whatever you feel, however long you’ve been mourning, is okay with us.

We are here, ready to mourn with you and share our supportive tools and presence as you transform your devastating loss into deeper love, a quiet sense of peace, maintained connection with your beloved, and meaningful new life purpose.

I Trust Them With My Grief!

Make an Appointment Today

What to Expect in Grief Counseling

Grief therapy is a unique form of counseling.  It’s meant to be a safe space to heal and process the loss, to feel all the emotions associated with bereavement in a supported environment, to learn coping skills for tolerating the distressing emotions, to discover how to regulate your body and respond to feelings without bypassing them, and for finding meaning and purpose that honors your loved one.

Therapy sessions address the following themes and goals:

  • Talking openly about your loved one
  • Experiencing and expressing emotions
  • Accepting the reality of the loss
  • Responding to the trauma of the loss
  • Learning and practicing skills for intrusive memories and big emotions
  • Overcoming guilt
  • Coping with changes and secondary losses
  • Building a supportive network
  • Adjusting to a new normal and identity
  • Discovering ways to live in honor of your loved one
  • Finding purpose and meaning

This list may feel hopeful or terrifying, or maybe a little of both.  It may even have aspects that seem impossible.  If so, we are here holding hope for you – we know that with time, you will be able to bear the unbearable heartbreak that you currently feel and that life can feel worthwhile again.  We are here to accompany you for the healing journey!

I Want My Grief to Be Held With Openness and Warmth!

Connect me With This Kind of Care

Work with a Certified Grief Counselor Near You

Dr. Darbonne has a particular passion for working with individuals as they feel their way through grief.  She engages in ongoing grief training opportunities and holds special certifications that inform her approach to grief therapy:

  • Certified Compassionate Bereavement Care provider from the MISS Foundation, Center for Loss & Trauma, and Elisabeth Kubler-Ross Family Trust.
  • Certified Grief Educator through training with grief expert David Kessler of grief.com

Dr. Darbonne is currently licensed to provide telemedicine grief counseling in multiple states. Click here to see if you live in a state where Dr. Darbonne is licensed.