The Benefits of Grief Counseling
What constitutes grief and loss varies for each individual. It could be the death of a loved one or close friend, adoption, significant change in lifestyle or being apart from primary care givers. Many extreme changes, perceived or real can cause a person to experience grief and loss. For our clients who have endured this type of pain, grief counseling and our young adult rehab programs can be extremely beneficial.
For many, it has become a way of coping with pain and daily struggles. To some degree, it is effective. Though harmful, substances and certain behaviors provide comfort and a reprieve from unwanted emotions. Drugs and alcohol fill a need no matter how unhealthy. Consequently, it is quite common for an individual to experience grief when faced with entering recovery and/or sobriety. Letting go can be scary, if not terrifying, for the individual who does not see a suitable substitute. If effective tools and mechanisms for grief and loss management are not provided, a new way of living may feel precarious.
Once a person enters recovery, painful feelings begin to surface. Severed relationships, damaged trust, squandered opportunities and wasted time, are but a few realizations that can bring about feelings of profound sadness. The damage caused while struggling with mental health, trauma, and substance use issues is evident and unavoidable. In addition to the loss they have already endured and tried to avoid, clients are now forced to look at their lives and the destruction their patterns and behavior have caused. Grieving begins. This is a natural human experience that follows the loss of something significant. This process is the way to acceptance of situations and circumstances. By allowing the ebb and flow of emotions to be felt and expressed while in the safety of our program, a path is cleared for a new way of living. Clients begin the journey of finding healthy ways to fulfill the emptiness and manage unpleasant feelings. Healing begins.
At Red Oak Recovery grief counseling will help clients explore life in recovery. Over time, and with practice, clients will learn to navigate the world and themselves without a need for substances or negative harmful behaviors. They will develop effective coping skills for dealing with difficult situations and a recovery community to assist them in this process. They will learn to process emotions in a more mature way. Our goal is for each individual to bring themselves, and their lives, back into balance. Encouragement and support through this process are keys for success and movement into recovery.