Death & Dying
It is very common for individuals to seek psychotherapy in times of grief. The death of a loved one is perhaps the single most intensive emotional experience an individual must face. These feelings are often intense enough to be quite debilitating and disorganizing. Although a certain period of anxiety and/or depression is expected throughout the natural grieving process, these intense emotions sometimes activate deeper layers of psychological unrest that have not previously been recognized. The therapist can help explore seemingly insurmountable feelings of pain and loss by providing a stable context from which to understand the natural process of grief. Oftentimes grieving individuals must continue to maintain normal functioning in the context of career or simple day-to-day tasks, and feel unable to experience 
their pain at its deepest levels. As psychotherapy has shown, the more the individual is able to truly experience and accept her intense feelings of loss and suffering, the grieving process is less likely to be complicated by overwhelming and extended feelings of anxiety and depression.
Faced with the death of a loved one, an individual may begin to struggle with existential issues, grappling with the inevitability of death. This could include questions about the nature and permanence of the self, as well as questions regarding beliefs about religion and spirituality. These issues are also likely to arise in the context of terminal illness, aging, or deteriorating health.
Although the therapist does not claim to be an absolute authority on such matters, he or she can help the client achieve a stable psychological base from which to consider these issues. From this more stable emotional context, the client is then encouraged to begin to re-examine and sort out these issues.
