Loss is something we all know. In some cases, however, it hits us so hard that we cannot process it properly. Grief, bitterness, or loneliness can sometimes remain present for a very long time and define your life. Memories can evoke very strong feelings that make you want to avoid thinking about them or just revel in them. If you feel that you cannot process a loss well, ACT therapy could help.
Grief can be about the loss of an important person in your life (e.g., a a deceased spouse or child, a broken relationship), as well as other important things such as the loss of your job or position. Even a long-term illness can be seen as a loss of the life you were leading. In all of these cases, grief therapy can help.
ACT for loss and grief
With ACT, you can learn how to gently allow and eventually accept your grief. This is important in processing the loss, but not everyone has learned how best to do that. Ignoring grief or pushing it away only helps temporarily. In the long run, it can cause numbness, or intense attacks of sadness or anger, and it can become increasingly difficult to experience joy. In addition to acceptance, ACT focuses on finding how life can be valuable and enjoyable for you, and how to start applying that step by step.
Body-focused processing
In my therapy, the body has an important role. This is not the case in all ACT therapies. However, I see that when people process emotions, they often ignore the body. Often people have long thought about the loss and already know well how to move on. But emotionally, the loss has not yet been fully processed. To do this well, we need to involve the body. I use exercises to better feel and allow your emotions in your body. Many people can then cope better with their painful feelings in a relatively short time.