Grief, Loss & Life Changes
Space to process what you've lost, make sense of complicated feelings, and adjust to what comes next.
Virtual therapy for adults in DC, NY, VA, VT, and UT
Grief can follow the death of someone you love, but it can also come with the ending of a relationship, changes in your health, family estrangement, or the loss of a future you once imagined.
You may be carrying sadness, anger, guilt, relief, or feelings that are difficult to put into words. Perhaps others have moved on while you're still trying to make sense of what happened. Or maybe your loss is difficult to explain because the relationship or experience was complicated to begin with.
You don't have to justify your grief or figure out how you're supposed to feel. Therapy offers space to explore your experience and find ways to navigate life while making room for what you've been through.
Grief Can Take Many Forms
Loss doesn't always look the way we expect. You might be grieving:
The Death of Someone You Love: Adjusting to life without a family member, partner, friend, or another important person.
Complicated Relationships: Processing the loss of a relationship, family estrangement, or the death of someone with whom you had unresolved feelings or a difficult history.
Unacknowledged Losses: Mourning experiences that others may not fully recognize, such as unmet emotional needs growing up, changes in health or independence, or a future that didn't unfold as you hoped.
Major Life Changes: Letting go of familiar routines, roles, or expectations as you navigate a new stage of life.
You may experience one of these losses or several at once. There isn't one right way to grieve, and your experience doesn't have to fit a particular timeline.
“There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition, and of unspeakable love.”
—Washington Irving
How Therapy Can Help
Grief can affect your relationships, your sense of self, and your ability to manage everyday responsibilities. You might find yourself revisiting what happened, struggling with mixed emotions, or wondering how to move forward without leaving something important behind.
In therapy, we'll make space for those feelings while exploring what support might look like for you. We may work on navigating guilt or unresolved feelings, adjusting to changes in your life, understanding how past experiences influence your grief, or finding ways to reconnect with people and activities that matter to you.
The goal isn't to forget what you've lost or rush toward closure. It's to help you make room for your grief while finding ways to live with the changes it has brought.
What Therapy With Me Is Like
My approach is warm, collaborative, and guided by your needs. You won't be expected to move through a set of stages or reach a particular point by a certain time.
We'll explore your experience at a pace that feels manageable, making space for the emotions and questions that come up along the way. When helpful, we'll also identify practical ways to navigate difficult days, draw on your existing strengths, and find support as you adjust to what has changed.
My Approach to Grief and Loss
Grief is personal, and there is no single way to process a loss. I draw from evidence-based, trauma-informed approaches to help you understand your experiences, navigate difficult emotions, and adjust to changes in your life.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Explore ways to make room for painful feelings while reconnecting with your values and identifying meaningful steps forward.
Trauma-Informed Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Understand how thoughts, emotions, and past experiences may influence how you respond to loss and develop practical ways to navigate difficult moments.
Meaning-Making and Identity
Explore how a loss has affected your sense of self, relationships, and view of the future while making space for what remains important to you.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Grief can follow many kinds of loss, including relationship changes, estrangement, changes in health, and the loss of expectations or experiences that mattered to you. You don't need to have lost someone to benefit from grief support.
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It's possible to miss someone and feel angry with them, experience relief alongside sadness, or grieve a relationship that was painful. You don't have to simplify your experience to make it easier for others to understand. Therapy can offer space to explore these feelings without judgment.
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There isn't a single timeline for grief. Your needs may change over time, and the support that feels helpful will depend on your circumstances, experiences, and goals. We'll work together to identify what you need and check in about your progress along the way.
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Cardinal Hope and Healing LLC is a private-pay, out-of-network practice and does not bill insurance directly. If your plan includes out-of-network mental health benefits, you may be eligible for reimbursement. You can use Reimbursify to verify your benefits and submit claims electronically, and monthly superbills are also available upon request.
HSA and FSA cards are accepted.
You Don't Have to Navigate Grief Alone
Whether you're mourning someone you love, processing a complicated relationship, or adjusting to a loss that others may not fully understand, you deserve space to work through your experience.
Let's talk about what you're going through and whether therapy might be a helpful next step.