Behind Closed Doors

I probably shouldn’t have this career. My line of work maybe shouldn’t exist.

Yet our grief-avoidant society is my job security.

How weird is that, right?

Grief counseling might not exist if we were:

1. More comfortable sitting with each others’ pain (vs. being uneasy with raw emotions)

2. Less determined to fix each others’ sadness (vs. feeling frustrated when someone isn’t their “old self”)

3. Better at listening to each other (vs. being focused on saying “the right thing”)

4. More open-minded with our expectations (vs. putting pressures on ourselves and others).

While there can be factors that add complexity to the process (and grief counseling can absolutely be beneficial), grief is largely a natural life event, a universal human experience.

So, yep, this pyramid often feels inverted: grievers coming to counseling often because their support systems are uncomfortable with/misunderstanding of death and grief. And often because we, as a society, have failed to talk about this “taboo” topic.

So, yep, let’s get talking. Get posting. Get to being honest and open. Let’s de-stigmatize grief. Let’s put me out of a job.😉

Image Credit: Bereavement Network Europe