Certified Grief Counseling and Oscillation

The idea of oscillation is new to Grief Theory and  certified Grief counseling in that in incorporates happy states of reprise from sadness until the mind and soul are ready to encounter the sadness again.  This up and down process continues until severity and regularity gradually decrease and the person is able to cope better and adapt to everyday living. The West has for sometime been cautious of such feelings because it was thought to be a state of denial but modern psychological findings are discovering that people do indeed go through ups and downs during the grief

process.  This is not to dismiss stage theory as a useful analysis of the grief process but it does point that stage theory does have some inaccuracies in describing the universal phenomenon of grief.  In fact, many people do not even follow the chronological stages of grief.  The paradigm of traditional grief thought is being replaced with a more fluid process that understands the oscillation and resiliency as natural factors during the grief process.

Grief Counseling Meets Resiliency

The reality is resiliency is more common than thought and is a natural method of coping.  While early studies are trying to determine if resiliency is genetic, the common notion today is that it is psychological and some have better coping abilities than others.  Obviously the traumatic level of the event does objectively effect the coping but overall an individuals ability to cope both externally and internally is advantageous over those who only cope inwardly or outwardly.  Another element of coping involves one’s outlook.  People who are able to find good out of evil and have a higher power they find solitude in are more likely to exhibit resilient behavior than those who do not.
Grief counselors need to identify these factors and encourage them in their clients to foster greater and faster recovery.  Adaptation to loss is quicker for those who exhibit these traits. If grief counselors can identify these traits, they can help others cultivate them so as to avoid complicated or pathological states of grief in the future.

By Mark Moran, MA