After months of quarantining, social distancing, worrying about the health of yourself and important others, home-schooling your children, missing out on celebrating major life milestones, and possibly even losing loved ones… your focus might now be shifting from survival mode, which has been helping you adjust to the chaos in the world, to your inner well being. You might be finding yourself finally acknowledging those feelings of fear, sadness, and confusion that you may not have given yourself time to feel in the last seven months or so. This is a time of grief and loss in the lives of many, including you. A time to give attention to the people, jobs, experiences, relationships, and sense of security you may have lost, and a time to allow yourself to grieve them. But how do you even begin? How do you cope, or better yet, thrive? Therapy for grief and loss in Florida might be the answer.
When you are ready to grieve your losses the most important thing is to allow the different feelings in.
To create space for the sadness, the loss, the pain. This doesn’t mean to drown in it but to allow it to arise when it is arising rather than to shove it away in a box. When you allow yourself to feel all that is present it helps you to move through it and move toward healing. Seeking a therapist who specializes in grief and loss in Florida can really help you create this space and shift from loss and pain toward healing.
While society slowly makes its way into its new normal, an individual or couples therapist, especially one that specializes in therapy for grief and loss in Florida, can help guide you through your grief and help you to find your strength.
Though face-to-face, in person sessions may still be unavailable, connecting virtually with a therapist can not only help to offer strategies to cope with your current circumstances, it can also be a way to connect with a person who is experiencing some of the same struggles you might be. Someone who understands. Someone who can relate. Someone who will listen without judgement. Therapy can help mend your romantic relationships as well, which might have begun to suffer as a casualty of months of stress and emotional pain. During the months of staying home, perhaps your perception of your partner has been less of a fun roommate and more of a cellmate. Through couples therapy, you and your partner can refocus your relationship, rebuild your connection and find your way back to each other.
From the decline of your sense of safety in the world to the inability to visit your favorite restaurants, the amount of loss you have experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic is immense.
More often than not, thinking about it all is nothing short of overwhelming. During the times of this world trauma, it is important to ground yourself in the little moments that bring you joy. Taking notice of the things around you that help to bring you a sigh of relief and gratitude is a magnificent way of making these anxiety provoking times a little more manageable. That first sip of coffee in the morning, the “good morning” text from your partner, your pet snuggled up next to you on the couch or the episode of your guilty pleasure tv show before bed… these are the moments to make sure to be present for.
Being mindful of and actively challenging uncomfortable thoughts you 
experience is another way to work through feelings of grief and loss in Florida.
experience is another way to work through feelings of grief and loss in Florida.For example, if you’re a parent, you might be struggling with your child having to virtually learn at the moment. Maybe you’re having thoughts like “will my child still be able to learn at home?” Or “will they be able to focus on their classes?” While these are valid concerns, it might be more helpful to shift your attention to thoughts that serve you, like “at home learning can allow me to be a more active part of their daily learning” or “this can be a way they can learn to self-motivate.” By actively challenging thoughts that do not serve you, you can remind yourself to focus on what is within your control and identify things that you are grateful for.
Grief and loss, whether you know it or not, has enveloped us all during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In order to cope, it is important to find ways to turn your focus to things that help you feel safe and bring you joy. Limiting the amount of news you watch or read, entering into individual or couples therapy, creating and keeping a daily routine, keeping up with personal hygiene, making time for pleasurable activities, setting phone or virtual dates with friends, eating healthy meals, finding a new hobby or exercising daily can all be great ways to maintain a sense of productivity and normalcy. It is easy to forget to look within yourself for ways to feel good, so take the time to listen to your body and mind and identify what it needs. You are enough to make yourself happy and live your best life, even during a pandemic. By Meigan Fernandez
Ready to Start Therapy for Grief and Loss in Florida?
Beginning the journey to your best self is easier than most of the things we’re all doing right now! Trauma therapy does not have to wait. You can get the mental health support you need with a skilled therapist in St. Pete or with online therapy in Florida. To begin, just follow these simple steps:
- Contact us to request an appointment
- Meet with one of our grief and loss therapists.
- Get support & begin your journey toward mental wellness & connection today!
Other Mental Health and Wellness Services at ME-Therapy
Therapy can take many forms. At our St. Petersburg therapy & wellness clinic, we want to will help your mind but also want to feed your soul. This means our therapists and wellness team take a holistic approach to your wellbeing. In order to do this, our therapists offer individual therapy for women, therapy for men, trauma therapy, therapy for anxiety, art therapy and holistic, spiritual therapy. In addition to standard marriage counseling & couples therapy, our relationship therapists also provide sex therapy, affair recovery counseling and poly-friendly kink aware therapy.
All of these services can be provided in-person at our St. Petersburg, FL counseling clinic or anywhere in the state with online therapy in Florida. If you have any questions about therapy, please visit our FAQ page! Also, you may consider reading more of our blog posts to get to know us a bit better. Finally, thank you for allowing ME-Therapy to be a part of your life journey!
