Bereavement Professional

  • 1.  Bereavement Support vs Grief Therapy

    This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous
    Posted 01-19-2021 05:55 PM
    This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

    How do you describe the difference between bereavement support vs grief therapy? I am not a licensed therapist and can't do therapy, but I'm struggling to explain this to a client. Any advice is greatly appreciated.


  • 2.  RE: Bereavement Support vs Grief Therapy

    Posted 01-20-2021 09:34 AM
    Typical grief is not something to be fixed but to be experienced. As bereavement support, we offer to walk the journey with them and offer insights, suggestions for coping and reflection. In therapy, there is a "problem" to be fixed. Perhaps poor coping skills that need improvement, family dynamics clouding the grief process that need to be looked at, history of trauma making it hard for the bereaved to feel their feelings, etc.
    It can be a very grey line as you explore grief with them and other things come up. You are right to be cautious and not cross that line.
    Hope that helps!​

    ------------------------------
    Carol Hallinan, LCPC
    Clinical Counselor
    Gilchrist
    11311 McCormick Road, Suite 350
    Hunt Valley MD 21031
    (Cell) 443-934-4858
    gilchristcares.org
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Bereavement Support vs Grief Therapy

    Posted 01-20-2021 09:45 AM
    William Worden's book on Grief Counseling and Grief Therapy is what I have always referred to as "the bible of bereavement." Every bereavement coordinator needs to read it cover to cover. Despite the fact that he is now in his '80's he has written a 5th edition so if you don't have a copy, be sure you get the most current edition. It has been translated into 14 languages!! I won't do this justice, but in his book he explains:
           Grief Counseling helps people navigate through the 4 tasks of mourning he developed -- 1. Accept the reality of the loss  2. To process the pain of grief  3. To adjust to a world without the deceased and  4. To find a way to remember the deceased while embarking on the rest of one's journey through life.   In essence, this is what all of us are doing with those who reach out to us for help.
           Grief Therapy involves addressing the 'hurdles' that interfere with one's ability to navigate these 4 tasks.  Most of us in our bereavemetn programs are helping people with grief counseling and when we realize there is more to it than that we are referring clients out to therapists in the community who have a solid understanding about the current research and models of grief and bereavement. I always embrace the opportunities to educate community therapists when invited to teach about current models and research in our field. It's win-win -- they better understand how to support bereaved individuals and we have a better sense of who 'gets it' out there who we can refer clients to. Hope that helps :-) 

    ------------------------------
    Patti Anewalt, Director
    Pathways Center for Grief & Loss
    Hospice & Community Care
    Mount Joy, PA
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Bereavement Support vs Grief Therapy

    Posted 01-20-2021 10:27 AM
    What a great question. Really made me think this morning! I am sure there is literature out there that describes the difference better than I would- and of course Grief Counseling and Grief Therapy by William Worden - he describes the differences. 
    I see bereavement "supportive" counseling as being more brief, having a problem- solving focus, being more psycho educational in nature, helping the mourner harness their own sources of support and build on past coping abilities, that sort of thing? Addressing secondary losses also

    Grief therapy to me is more intra psychic, more long-term, examining how the current loss impacts former experience, feelings, patterns, etc.  Maybe the goal is not only to support the current grief process, but engender more fundamental change? 

    Of course the skillset and experience of the practitioner is different. 
    I am sure others will have input! Thanks for the question.

    ------------------------------
    Robin Fiorelli LCSW
    Sr. Director of Bereavement and Volunteers
    VITAS
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: Bereavement Support vs Grief Therapy

    Posted 01-20-2021 03:46 PM

    Our bereavement support program consist of calls to the bereaved by our bereavement support volunteers, the monthly mailings and information about our support groups.   If a bereaved needs "counseling" then they are referred to our bereavement counselor  who is trained in grief and loss for  1-3 sessions and then referred out to community therapist or the bereaved's EAP  if more is needed.

     

    Pattie Franceschini, LISW, ACHP-SW

    Manager Social Work/Bereavement

    Presbyterian Home Health, Hospice, Palliative Care

    Work cell 505-659-9901

    Cell 505-217-6692 

     

     


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  • 6.  RE: Bereavement Support vs Grief Therapy

    Posted 01-21-2021 09:29 AM
    I, too, am not a licensed therapist.  I tell my clients that I can walk alongside them for a short while and provide education and resources as they find their feet in the midst of grief, and as they begin to effectively mourn.  I let them know, right up front, that I do short-term counseling, up to 6 sessions, and that I can provide them with a list of area therapists and licensed grief counselors, should they want one-on-one support over the full arc of their mourning.  I let them know that while I can walk with them a short way along their path and share what I know, I have neither the therapeutic training and licensure, nor the institutional resources, to offer them more than that. 

    Some of the folks I see only come in once or twice.  It seems like they mostly want permission to grieve and reassurance that grief is normal, not crazy.  Some folks come in with the weight of many ungrieved losses or other complicating factors that warrant therapeutic skills, right from the start, as they navigate the complexity.  Some folks do not seem to have family or community supports that provide an outlet for expressing their grief, and just need someone to talk to for a while.  In that case, as we together begin to normalize grief and mourning, they sometimes become more comfortable and begin reaching out to their friends and family.  Other times, they seek out a therapist as we near the end of our 6 sessions.

    At one point, I engaged in a Complicated Grief training that helped me figure out my professional boundaries in this admittedly murky business.  It was super helpful.

    Best regards,
    Annie 


    Annie Hall, M.Div.

    Chaplain and Bereavement Coordinator

    Hospice of Saint Mary's

    Medstar St. Mary's Hospital

    301-994-3023 (w)

    301-994-3318 (f) 





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  • 7.  RE: Bereavement Support vs Grief Therapy

    Posted 01-22-2021 12:21 PM
    will you share, please, which Complicated Grief program you attended?

    Veronica M. Ibarra, MS, FT, BCC

    Bereavement Counselor

    Presbyterian Home Health, Hospice, and Palliative Care

    Albuquerque, NM

    Bereavement Services: 505-559-7055

    Cell: 505-377-1601

    Hospice Main: 505-559-1000


    " When someone is in your heart, they're never truly gone. 
    They can come back to you, even at unlikely times." - Mitch Albom




    *-*-*- Presbyterian_Healthcare_Services_DISCLAIMER -*-*-*
    This message originates from Presbyterian Healthcare Services or one of its affiliated organizations.
    It contains information, which may be confidential or privileged, and is intended only for the individual or entity named above. It is prohibited for anyone else to disclose, copy, distribute or use the contents of this message. All personal messages express views solely of the sender, which are not to be attributed to Presbyterian Healthcare Services or any of its affiliated organizations, and may not be distributed without this disclaimer.

    If you received this message in error, please notify us immediately at info@phs.org
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  • 8.  RE: Bereavement Support vs Grief Therapy

    Posted 01-25-2021 12:01 PM
    Yes, sure.  The Complicated Grief training I went to was with Alan Wolfelt, through the Center for Loss and Life Transition.  Here's a link:  https://www.centerforloss.com/trainings/

    Best regards,
    Annie


    Annie Hall, M.Div.

    Chaplain and Bereavement Coordinator

    Hospice of Saint Mary's

    Medstar St. Mary's Hospital

    301-994-3023 (w)

    301-994-3318 (f) 





    MedStar Health is a not-for-profit, integrated healthcare delivery system, the largest in Maryland and the Washington, D.C., region. Nationally recognized for clinical quality in heart, orthopedics, cancer and GI.


    IMPORTANT: This e-mail (including any attachments) may contain information that is private, confidential, or protected by attorney-client or other privilege. If you received this e-mail in error, please delete it from your system without copying it and notify sender by reply e-mail, so that our records can be corrected... Thank you.


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  • 9.  RE: Bereavement Support vs Grief Therapy

    Posted 01-24-2021 06:40 PM

    A grief therapist tends to meet with the client with greater frequency (1X per week or more).  This creates a deeper sense of safety for the client and a deeper therapeutic alliance for both parties. 


    As a counselor, I usually "meet" with a client once every two weeks. I do a lot of referrals as many of my clients want or need a deeper relationship with a mental health professional.  


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