Loss, Grief and Bereavement
Recently, we worked with an 87 year old widower who three months previously had lost his wife of 62 years. They had had a satisfying marriage. The widower’s daughter made the initial call. She felt her father was ‘lost , lonely and very sad and she felt he needed support from someone other than her and her siblings. Although the gentleman had never been in a therapy or counseling situation before, he decided, after our first appointment, that he wanted to work with us. We met for approximately ten times over the next six months. He needed the therapist to… [CONTINUED] provide him with a safe space, unhurried, where he could talk about his wife, their marriage and how bereft he felt without her. We went at HIS pace, seeing each other three times in the first month, then seeing each other every three weeks or so. He was particularly anxious before he went to the cemetery and we rehearsed the scenario beforehand. He also had some natural anxiety about anniversary dates….their wedding anniversary and Mothers’ Day as well as a grandchild’s birthday. With gentle support, he was able to mourn his losses [loss of his best friend and companion as well as wife] and was able to find his ‘new normal’.