Adelaide Grief and Loss Support Group
By Life Coach Adelaide | Adelaide Grief and Loss Support Group | No Comments
If you have recently (or even not so recently) experienced the death of a loved one and feel that you need some extra support and help in order to cope with your emotions, then the Adelaide Grief and Loss Support Group is here for you.
The program consists of a course that lasts for eight weeks, with a different topic being explored each week. Sessions run for an 1½ to 2 hours and the total cost is $120 for all eight sessions.
Read more below on the topics that are discussed each week during the course of the program.
The first session is about getting acquainted and goal setting. Depending on where you are in your loss journey, you may set yourself a goal such as sorting through your loved one’s effects. You might also set a goal of socialising more, or processing your emotions so that you are able to feel more at peace. The goals that you set are up to you, but ideally they should be medium-term goals that are achievable over the 8 weeks of the course.
In the second week, we will review the homework task that is set in the initial session. The task that you will be given is to write an ongoing journal in relation to your loss. This is because it is helpful to write down at the end of each day the things you noticed during that day, such as triggers that reminded you of your loved one, the emotions you felt and the thoughts that came into your mind, as well as any specific coping strategies that are helping you (or otherwise). Rating the strength of the emotions you felt may also be a good idea. You will find that writing these things down will help to objectify your experiences and to express them better.
The topic addressed in the third week will be expressing feelings, and so articulating what you think and feel will be encouraged and discussed this week. By sharing and expressing emotions, and experiencing the feeling that you are being understood, it will become easier to accept what you have been through, and in turn it will become easier for you to process your emotions.
The subject of the fourth week’s program is memories. We will share specific memories and you will be encouraged to consider both positive and negative character aspects that your loved one portrayed, so that the whole person is remembered.
During the fifth week, we will be exploring stress and how to cope with it. We will look at different helpful coping strategies, and well as some that are not so helpful. Mindfulness meditation and creative visualisation will also be introduced, and we will undertake some brief mindfulness practice.
The sixth week’s topic is memorialisation, continuing bonds and rituals. It is helpful to keep your loved one in your life in some way, and so memorialisation is a positive way of doing this. Members of the group share their thoughts on this topic, and the various rituals that people may have are also discussed.
In the seventh week, we will explore the benefit of having support systems in place in order to cope with the grieving process.
The final week of the program, week eight, is a time for feedback and the celebration of life. Feedback is given, goals are assessed and members give constructive feedback to each other that they can take away. Food is shared (if this has been arranged) and certificates are presented.
Find out more about the Adelaide Grief and Loss Support Group
The Adelaide Grief and Loss Support Group is run on an ongoing basis, with a few weeks’ break in between. Sessions are held in Tranmere, in the eastern suburbs of Adelaide. Group members make significant progress and find it a helpful way of going through their grief and loss journey.
If you have suffered the loss of a loved one and would like to attend this group, please contact Diana on 0417 295100 to find our more or book your place on the next course.