Grief is a multi-faceted response to loss, particularly to the loss of someone or something beloved. It spans the emotions of numbness, disbelief, separation anxiety, despair, sadness, and loneliness.

Although conventionally focused on the emotional response to loss, it also has physical, cognitive, behavioral, social, and philosophical dimensions. Common to human experience is the death of a loved one, whether it be a friend, family, or other companion. While the terms are often used interchangeably, bereavement often refers to the state of loss, and grief to the reaction to loss.

Losses can range from loss of employment, pets, status, a sense of safety, order, or possessions, to the loss of loved ones. Our response to loss is varied and researchers have moved away from conventional views of grief (that is, that people move through an orderly and predictable series of responses to loss) to one that considers the wide variety of responses that are influenced by personality, family, culture, and spiritual and religious beliefs and practices.

Bereavement, while a normal part of life, carries a degree of risk when limited support is available. Severe reactions to loss may carry over into familial relations and cause trauma for children, spouses and any other family members: there is an increased risk of marital breakup following the death of a child, for example. Issues of personal faith and beliefs may also face challenge, as bereaved persons reassess personal definitions in the face of great pain.

While many who grieve are able to work through their loss independently, accessing additional support from bereavement professionals may promote the process of healing. Grief counseling, professional support groups or educational classes, and peer-led support groups are primary resources available to the bereaved. In the United States, local hospice agencies may be an important first contact for those seeking bereavement support.

From Wikipedia under the GNU Free Documentation License
Sat Aug 8 16:45:46 2009

What are the requirements to become a grief counselor?
Q. I am wanting a career change(mid-life crisis I suppose) since I will be having a milestone birthday later this year. I feel a strong pull towards grief counseling but do not know where to begin. My pastor says I should be looking for a program that is faith-based. Can anyone give me some suggestions?
Asked by catymoody - Sat Apr 19 14:28:56 2008 - - 2 Answers - 0 Comments

A. My auntie went to leeds university for two years for a dipolma in counselling, and stayed an extra year for a degree in it, and you can THEN go on to get a diploma in a pecifin type of counselling if you wish. Uni websites are so fuckiing hard to get around, i find this with manchester and nottingham's sites too. :/ There are no legal minimum qualifications needed to be a counsellor, but it does help if you want to increase ur employability. And secondly, *Counsellor, correct spelling could help :) Follow this link for imformation on a diploma in grief counselling *Edit Open college is a good option, so u can continue your current career in order to earn, until the course is over. Faith based grief counsellors would be… [cont.]
Answered by Flop Contributor. - Sat Apr 19 14:40:32 2008

How do you know when you should seek professional grief counseling?
Q. Recent passing of my terminally ill Mother has left the technicolor world in which I lived, black-and-white. Has anyone had any good experience with grief counseling in the United States? Any other recommendations for coping?
Asked by iniyaitza - Tue May 30 07:31:51 2006 - - 10 Answers - 0 Comments

A. I'm really sorry for your loss. What could it hurt to try the counseling? If it helps you then at least you can get some help dealing with this and if it doesn't help then at least you have made an effort. I used to babysit a woman's children every week while she went to grief counseling but it was a group meeting and it really did help her. I would suggest a group counseling so that you can have support from others that actually do understand what you are going through.
Answered by September 13th!! - Tue May 30 07:36:31 2006

What are the healthy ways to cope with grief?
Q. What are the healthy ways to cope with grief?
Asked by Johnson L - Sun Feb 1 20:07:12 2009 - - 8 Answers - 0 Comments

From Yahoo Answer Search: "Grief"
Mon Aug 31 19:49:14 2009

Grief, or Bereavement, is the sense of loss accompanying the death of a loved one.

Contents

Sourced

  • Believe me, it is no time for words when the wounds are fresh and bleeding; no time for homilies when the lightning's shaft has smitten and the man lies stunned and stricken. Then let the comforter be silent; let him sustain by his presence, not by his preaching; by his sympathetic silence, not by his speech. "Afterward," when the storm is spent, he may venture to open his mouth; "afterward," when the morn has dawned, he may seek "to justify the ways of God to man;" for " afterward" the sufferer will be prepared to hear, and "afterward" the sufferer himself may be able to extract sweetness from bitterness, music from mourning, songs from sorrow, and " the peaceable fruit of righteousness " from the root of wretchedness and woe.
    • George C. Lorimer, in Isms Old and New: Winter Sunday Evening Sermon-series for 1880-81 (1881), Ch. 6: Pessimism, or The Mystery of Human Suffering, "Unwise Comforters", p. 147
Brandon Hodges Left with Pain, Grief Months After Fatal Crash - First Coast News
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Brandon Hodges Left with Pain, Grief Months After Fatal Crash

First Coast News

They describe the days after as full of grief ; the family attended as many of the funerals as Brandon felt comfortable attending, but Carl Hilliard says his ...



and more »
Widows cope amid grief from loss - Town Hall
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Widows cope amid grief from loss

Town Hall

"We probably don't ever 'recover' from grief ; instead, we learn to manage and cope," explained Barbara M. Roberts in her handbook "Helping Those Who Hurt" ...

FIRST-PERSON: Showing love to widows Town Hall



all 4 news articles »
Look for ways to help children through grief process - Statesman Journal
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Look for ways to help children through grief process

Statesman Journal

Common signs of grieving are outbursts, withdrawing from people or activities, becoming more "clingy" or fearful, moping and having a short temper. ...

From Google News Search: "Grief"
Thu Sep 3 15:49:32 2009

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View Online Facing Your Grief

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Above Amy Woodruff in the Foliage Mask as Antigone in Grief Doubled Kreon Antigone Above Amy Woodruff in the Oedipus Mask as Antigone in her final moments of life in Grief Doubled Kreon Antigone

From Yahoo Image Search: "Grief"
Wed Sep 2 13:43:22 2009

Six Phases of Twitter Grief ~ Of Cabbages and Kings
cabbagesnkings.net
Six Phases of Twitter Grief ~ Of Cabbages and Kings

Jenn Thorson

Mon, 24 Aug 2009 11:00:00 GM

So during these four days of Twitter withdrawal, that is when I discovered the Six Phases of Twitter . Grief. : 1.) Shock. "I can log in, but I can't post. I really can't post. Oh my God, I can't post I can't post I can't post! ...

From Good Grief to Good Governance Sunflower Chalice
sunflowerchalice.com
From Good Grief to Good Governance Sunflower Chalice

revtony

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 05:10:56 GM

From Good . Grief. to Good Governance. June 29, 2009 by revtony. From Good . Grief. to Good Governance. During the final plenary session of General Assembly, UUA Moderator Gini Courter spoke at some length relative to the over length of her ...

 Grief and Loss Discussion on KUCB 89.7 FM Tuesday, August 25 KUCB
kucb.wordpress.com
Grief and Loss Discussion on KUCB 89.7 FM Tuesday, August 25 KUCB

kucb

ue, 25 Aug 2009 01:58:41 GM

As a part of our community outreach and collaboration with local service providers, KUCB 89.7 FM and Channel 8 TV will present several programs about coping with death and . grief. beginning this week and continuing with the topic of ...

From Google Blog Search: "Grief"
Sat Sep 5 15:15:28 2009