Bereavement counselling

For many of us, bereavement will be the most distressing experience of our lives.

Unsurprisingly, bereavement is one of the most common reasons people seek therapy: the death of a loved one can be devastating. An experienced therapist will support you through the difficult process of grieving and help you come to terms with your loss.

Understanding grief

Grief is how we feel when we lose someone we care about or something we value. It affects everyone. It is painful and stressful but also natural, normal and necessary.

Everyone experiences grief differently and there is no normal or right way to grieve. How we react is influenced by many things including our age, culture, religious beliefs and previous experiences of bereavement.

The way in which a person died may also have an impact on the grieving process: was the death by natural causes, an accident or suicide? Was the death sudden or expected? Could the death have been prevented if circumstances had been different?

Grief also changes over time. Reactions and feelings can change from hour to hour. Some people find these mood swings very frightening.

The stages of grief

People sometimes talk about the five stages of grief. These are:

  • denial – finding it hard to believe that your loved one is gone
  • anger that the person is gone, which may be directed at them, yourself, doctors, God, etc
  • bargaining – ruminating on if onlys and what ifs, trying to find ways the death could have been prevented
  • depression – feeling very low and empty, perhaps seeing little point in carrying on
  • acceptance that the death has happened and life must move on.
However, people rarely go neatly through these stages in order. More realistically, there is a lot of moving back and forth between stages. Some people try to rush through the stages, or to skip straight to acceptance. Grief cannot be rushed; the important thing is to allow yourself to feel what you feel, at your own pace.

Put your well-being in our experienced hands

We have helped many people come to terms with the loss of a loved one.

Our clients have reported great results!

Mr K
Read More
“I was attending sessions at One Therapy practice for about 1 1/2 years. I am very happy with the result, sessions there really helped me. I am really grateful to my therapist. Someone recommended him to me as a high professional and it proved right, thank you.”
Mrs M
Read More
“I can only provide positive comments on my sessions with (my therapist). This was my first experience with a therapist, and she managed to make me feel comfortable. And I must say that the sessions were helpful and efficient.”
Mrs E
Read More
“My therapist was extremely helpful, considerate and understanding. I felt she properly understood what the issues I had were, and their underlying causes, and I feel I benefited considerably from the sessions with her.”
Mrs N
Read More
“I immediately felt completely at ease as they were very professional while showing genuine care and interest in helping me. I was able to confront many issues which I had so far chosen to ignore despite their negative effects on my personal relationships and happiness. I would have no hesitation in recommending (One Therapy) to anyone looking to improve their relationships and self-esteem.”
Mrs L
Read More
“I learned a lot about myself and about the relationships I make with other people. I was able to see where I was going wrong and I now make better personal choices. Thank you, again.”
Mrs R
Read More
“I can’t thank you enough for the help and support I got from my appointments. I would highly recommend therapy to anyone now. Therapy helped me in more ways than I could have imagined. Please tell (my therapist) how grateful I am for her help.”

Coping with loss

When someone close to you dies, there is a lot of change for you to come to terms with. The person you love is no longer part of your world. You may have to let go of dreams you had of your future with them. You may need to take on additional responsibilities now that they are not around. Or you may now have more time for yourself if you were caring for them. You may find your own grief is pushed aside so that you can support others who are also grieving. It’s a lot to deal with and it can feel overwhelming. 

If you are also handling practical matters around the death, it can feel even worse. People are often surprised by the volume of admin around death, how long it goes on and how unbearable it can feel to have to deal with practical matters when you are already in pain.

With such a lot to deal with, there are a host of different emotions as you go through grief and loss. Some of the most common are:

It can take some time for the reality of the death to sink in. You don’t want to believe that someone you love has died. The reality can feel almost too much to bear.

You’ve lost so much – the person, their love, their friendship, their companionship, intimacy, opportunities and hopes. And this loss may bring tremendous feelings of sadness.

You may feel guilty about things you said or did, or things you didn’t say or do. You may also feel guilty that you are still alive, or that you have times when you feel happy or when you focus on something other than your loss.

Death can seem very unfair. Many people find it difficult to make sense of personal loss.

It’s natural to feel angry about what has been taken from you – the person who has died and the future you would have had with them. You might feel angry with yourself too, for what you did or did not do before they died. But perhaps most difficult of all, you might feel angry with the dead person for dying and abandoning you and for the pain you are suffering as a result of their death.

Grieving can be a lonely process. You may feel that no one can possibly understand what you are going through. And you may feel reluctant to talk to friends about how you’re feeling. Many people are awkward around the topic of death, so it can be hard to find someone who will be alongside you in your grief.

Grieving can bring on both physical and mental pain which can be overwhelming and frightening. Some people are surprised at how painful grieving can be.

You might feel relieved, especially if the death follows a long illness or if the person’s life had been difficult or uncomfortable in their final months.

Sometimes people worry that they’re not feeling enough about a death. They wonder why they’re not crying as much as those around them. It may be that they are subconsciously numbing their feelings. 

How bereavement counselling can help

Bereavement counselling will help you to process the complex feelings you may go through in your grief. They can be overwhelming at times, hard to get in touch with at other times, and often confusing. Talking to one of our London therapists will really help.

At a time when it can be hard to turn to friends and family, who may be going through their own grief, therapy provides a precious space where you can express yourself freely.

Our therapists aren’t awkward around death. They can hear your pain and anger without judging you or feeling overwhelmed by it.

Many people worry that grief will go on forever.  With the support of your therapist, the pain will gradually lessen and you will find a new way of living.

Both face-to-face and online counselling are available.

What to expect in counselling

When I trained as a psychotherapist, me and my fellow students were given the assignment of doing something we’d never done before. The course tutors wanted us to get in touch with how scary it can be to do something new, to feel the fear of the unknown. I chose to …

Read more

What do I talk about in counselling?

One of the most common worries I hear expressed by people starting counselling is that they won’t know what to talk about. Some people think their problems aren’t significant enough. Others fear they have too much to say, that they might overwhelm the therapist…

Read more

Counselling for individuals

Personal counselling can be about anything that is on your mind.

Read more

Couples counselling

Couples counselling provides space for couples to discuss problems in their relationship and find solutions.

Read more

Our therapists

We have over 30 qualified and experienced therapists to choose from.

Read more

One Therapy London

Counselling, psychotherapy, couples counselling in London since 2006

Therapist Jayne Levy
Jayne Levy

Jayne has a gentle and empathic approach, allowing clients to feel comfortable and relaxed as they begin therapy She offers a non-judgmental and confidential space where clients are safe to express their feelings and thoughts and explore some of the difficulties and challenges they may be experiencing As a humanistic integrative therapist, Jayne is guided by her...

Kensington

Lara Vasey

Lara is an integrative therapist who offers short- and longer-term therapy to individuals Starting therapy can feel daunting, but Lara’s warm demeanour helps her clients feel more comfortable She creates a confidential and non-judgemental environment, which enables her clients to open up about their thoughts, feelings and experiences With empathy and curiosity, her...

Kensington

Therapist Ben Brackenbury
Ben Brackenbury

Ben believes that at times we all struggle with the challenges life has to offer and therapy provides a safe, confidential, non-judgemental space to explore this Ben works with individuals to make sense of who they are and how they respond to the world today, and to explore new ways of being Ben is also sensitive to how difficult it might be for a client to talk to a...

Oxford Circus

Therapist Janis Dellner
Janis Dellner

Janis offers an empathic, non-judgmental and safe environment where her clients can explore the issues that are currently troubling them  Janis works collaboratively to explore and challenge thoughts, feelings and behaviours that are no longer serving her clients’ wellbeing, interests and relationships with themselves and others  She believes it is through the...

Oxford Circus

Therapist Nicola Reeves
Nicola Reeves

Nicola is a psychodynamic psychotherapist and EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) therapist Nicola believes in giving clients time and space to approach therapy in the way they need to approach it She finds this is the best way to develop a therapeutic relationship that allows feelings to be truly explored and evaluated As a psychodynamic...

Oxford Circus

Therapist Ben Marks
Ben Marks

Ben is an experienced psychotherapist who has helped many people through difficult times in their lives He works with clients with a wide range of personal issues around depression, anxiety, bereavement, trauma, abuse, loneliness, stresses within the workplace, low self esteem, relationship and sexual problems including performance anxiety, erectile dysfunction and...

Oxford Circus

Therapist Antonella Bonetti
Antonella Bonetti

Antonella is a psychodynamic therapist offering short- and long-term therapy to adults She also sees couples facing issues within their relationship Since obtaining her Master’s degree in Psychodynamic Counselling and Psychotherapy, Antonella has worked in different organisational settings (charities, NHS and university counselling services) helping people from...

Bloomsbury

Kensington

Therapist Yussef Ferguson
Yussef Ferguson

Yussef is a psychodynamic psychotherapist who offers both long and short term personal therapy to individuals He has experience of working with a diverse range of clients and can provide a warm, confidential space to explore and gain insight into any past or present personal difficulties and experiences Yussef works with issues such as anxiety, depression, loss,...

Oxford Circus

Therapist Asma Gharbi
Asma Gharbi

Asma offers psychodynamic, humanistic and integrative therapies to individuals and couples She tailors her approach to meet the needs and preferences of her clients She offers short and long term therapy Asma provides a non-judgemental space for her clients, where they can feel safe to explore their feelings, make sense of their experiences and forge deep lasting...

Oxford Circus

Kensington

Therapist Marta Pisarri
Marta Pisarri

Marta is a psychologist and an integrative psychotherapist: she has been working in the field of mental health for over 12 years in both private and public sectors She provides psychotherapeutic support to individuals and families Marta provides individual therapy for those who struggle to manage life's challenges, want to improve their relationships, discard thoughts...

Oxford Circus