Prop-long Treatments

Prolonged grief is a mental illness that affects the patient physically, mentally and socially. As the disease progresses, the individual is at risk for developing a variety of complications that range from mild to severe.

As grief continues to linger, patients are more likely to slide into a deep, profound depression. They have no motivation to perform any task and would rather not interact with the people around them. In the worst cases of depression, the bereaved individual will turn to thoughts of suicide.Without treatment, truly depressed individuals are at a high risk for attempting to kill themselves.

Prolonged grief places a great amount of stress and tension on the affected person. High levels of stress can cause physical illness, the Mayo Clinic warns. Patients suffering from prolonged grief are more likely to suffer from high blood pressure and heart disease. Cancer rates are also elevated in people who suffered from complicated grief.

Unbearable grief often drives people to substance abuse. At first, they turn to mild substances such as alcohol or nicotine but as the grief lingers, patients graduate to more powerful substances like heroin or cocaine. Initially, the individual may turn to substance abuse to alleviate the symptoms of grief; however, over time, they will become addicted to the substance. Addiction to an illicit substance is a whole other disease that brings its own set of complications and usually exacerbates the effects of a grief disorder.

The most telling complication of prolonged grief disorder (PGD) is the inability to deal with daily living. Even the most mundane chores seem daunting to someone suffering from PGD. They will need care and monitoring from a dedicated caregiver. If the grief is not treated, patients will slowly deteriorate physically and psychologically.

The disease also adversely affects the friends and relatives of a person suffering from PGD. They often feel hurt and helpless when they are unable to help their loved one. Some people react with anger or frustration. In most cases, complicated grief places a massive burden on all of the patient’s relationships. Prompt, comprehensive treatment helps prevent any long-term damage to the patient’s interpersonal connections.

Treatment

There Is No Set Treatment Modaity that works in  every case of prolonged grief disorder. Most Medical Professional will design a Treatment Plan that Best Suits the Patient's Specific Symptoms and Life Situation.

The pharmacological options for complicated grief have yet to be established. Antidepressants are the most often used medications as they help patients deal with the symptoms of grief-associated depression. In most cases, pharmacological treatment is secondary to psychotherapy.The best treatment plans use a mix of psychotherapy and medications. In psychotherapy, therapists guide the patient into the basis and foundation of their grief. Patients are encouraged to explore their reaction to grief, their symptoms and their personal goals. An article in Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy recommends that therapists attempt to redirect the patient’s goals from inward-directed goals (making themselves feel better) to outward-directed goals (goals related to outside events). Therapy should provide the patient with coping mechanisms that reduce feelings of blame and grief.

Interventions

While in the midst their grief, most people are unable to even consider treatment. The longer the grief lasts, the less likely they are to seek treatment for their depression. If left alone, people with prolonged grief are likely to suffer severe complications.

Luckily, most grief-stricken individuals are surrounded by friends and relatives who are willingly to support and help them. Most relatives will recognize the symptoms of prolonged grief disorder and suggest the subject seek medical help. This is usually enough, but in some cases, the patient is resistant to treatment. They may believe that their grief is normal, that they deserve to suffer or that the grief is the best way to hold on to what initially caused the grief.

Overcoming this resistance is usually too difficult for most families. Therefore, instead of approaching the patient on their own, families will employ a professional interventionist and stage an intervention. During the intervention, the team is able to vocalize the numerous adverse effects the prolonged grief has caused. Ideally, the patient will then consider the presented information and agree to undergo treatment.

If you have any questions about interventions, or would like help staging an intervention for your grief-stricken loved one, contact Dr. Losito today. Dr. Losito Is here to help.

Seek the Bereavement Counselor

How does a young child recover from the loss of a Father or Mother. In most case a young child does not and then goes into an adult full of abandonment, lack of parenting, Drug and Alcohol uses, and most case become homeless in the end. 

Dr. Nicholas Losito, Ph.D,CTS is there to provide Pre-Anticipatory losses and Prepare the young child from ever becoming lost, forgotten, and prepare them for Success.  

Grief and Grieving - Treatment Overview

Grief  itself is a natural response that doesn't require medical treatment. But sometimes people need help getting through the grieving process.

Initial grief

• Medicine. During the initial days of grief, anxiety or sleeplessness can make it difficult to function. If you suffer more than a few days of severe agitation, talk to your doctor about whether a short-term prescription sedative medicine can help you. (Doctors disagree about the usefulness of medicines for people who are grieving. Some doctors believe that giving medicines for anxiety or sleep may interfere with the ability to grieve.)

• Counseling. If you find that obstacles to grieving are making it difficult to function after a loss, talk to Dr. Losito at 877-867-8556 , attend a bereavement support group, or both. Counseling and support groups can also help you work through unresolved grief from a past loss.

Chronic grief and complications

If you or someone you know exhibits suicidal behavior  (such as thinking you cannot stop yourself from harming or killing yourself), call 911 or other emergency services immediately.

If you find that a major loss has caused complications, such as depression, prolonged anxiety, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or severe and prolonged grief, see your doctor and a grief counselor for treatment.

If you have a chronic medical condition that has been made worse by the emotional and physical stress of grief, see your doctor immediately.

The New Stages of Grief

After the funeral and burial, mundane life patterns such as shopping and working must eventually resume, now in altered form. "Everyday life" often leaves survivors experiencing long-term reactions on top of the more familiar emotional and physical manifestations of grief.

Most common: yearning (intense longing for the person who has died), stress, and depression. These can prevail whether the relationship was happy or turbulent.

"Whatever unresolved issues you have, they get magnified and are elusive at the same time; you feel alone in the world," says Ellie, whose parents and sister all died within five years. "I felt so isolated in my grief."

Recommendations: 

Not rushing yourself. "Being without my parents knocked me down and kept me down for a long time; it was as if something had been severed in me," says Ellie. "Time and new experiences helped, but it was mostly a matter of putting one foot in front of the other."

Ignoring the "grief police." Don't let others rush your adjustment. Turn a deaf ear to the well-meaning comments people make that miss the mark -- including "It's time to move on."

Getting help as needed with practical tasks. Handling finances, cooking, yard work, and so on can swamp a bereaved person, especially if they're unfamiliar duties. This just adds to stress and prolongs pain.

Inching toward new ways of doing things. One woman who had a standing Saturday morning long phone call with her late mother felt bereft at that hour each week. "I switched my walking time to then and called my sister while I walked, which shook up my routine and dulled the pain."

Not expecting you can medicate the pain away. Antidepressants have a place in helping someone who has a chemical imbalance causing depression. But antidepressants can also impede the grieving process, and they can't remove the yearning that's associated with depression. The goal should be to think about the deceased with less pain, over time, and to derive a measure of comfort from such thoughts.

Do Not Grieve Alone

The single most important factor in healing from loss is having the support of other people. Even if you aren’t comfortable talking about your feelings under normal circumstances, it’s important to express them when you’re grieving. Sharing your loss makes the burden of grief easier to carry. Wherever the support comes from, accept it and do not grieve alone. Contact Dr. Losito an excellent and experienced grief and loss therapist.

Finding support after a loss

• Turn to friends and family members – Now is the time to lean on the people who care about you, even if you take pride in being strong and self-sufficient. Draw loved ones close, rather than avoiding them, and accept the assistance that’s offered. Oftentimes, people want to help but don’t know how, so tell them what you need—whether it’s a shoulder to cry on or help with funeral arrangements.
• Draw comfort from your faith – If you follow a religious tradition, embrace the comfort its mourning rituals can provide. Spiritual activities that are meaningful to you—such as praying, meditating, or going to church—can offer solace. If you’re questioning your faith in the wake of the loss, talk to a clergy member or others in your religious community.
• Join a support group – Grief can feel very lonely, even when you have loved ones around. Sharing your sorrow with others who have experienced similar losses can help. To find a bereavement support group in your area, contact local hospitals, hospices, funeral homes, and counseling centers.
• Talk to Dr. Losito – If your grief feels like too much to bear, call a Dr. Losito a mental health professional with experience in grief counseling.  He is an experienced therapist can help you work through intense emotions and overcome obstacles to your grieving.

Christmas Is time for Self-Esteem Re-enforcement

The terms self-esteem and self-confidence are often used interchangeably when referring to how one feels about themselves. Although they are very similar, they are two different concepts. It is important to understand their roles when looking to improve your overall sense of self.

What is Self-Esteem?

Self-esteem refers to how you feel about yourself overall; how much esteem, positive regard or self-love you have. Self-esteem develops from experiences and situations that have shaped how you view yourself today.

Self-confidence is how you feel about your abilities and can vary from situation to situation. I may have healthy self-esteem, but low confidence about situations involving math (this is true).

When you love yourself, your self-esteem improves, which makes you more confident. When you are confident in areas of your life, you begin to increase your overall sense of esteem. You can work on both at the same time.

What Does Low Self-Esteem Look Like?

A friend told me she has low self-esteem; she constantly feels “I’m not good enough.” This concept has developed over her entire life. She has been in a series of unhealthy relationships, is frequently belittled by her boss, and constantly tells herself “I suck, I’m not worth it.” Recognizing she has this negative script, she is now better able to change it.

On the positive side, she is confident about being an amazing chef, a caring friend, and having the ability to be super-organized. She knows and believes this about herself and feels confident in these areas. By focusing on the things she is confident in and working on changing her negative self-talk, she is improving both her self-esteem and self-confidence.

Ideas for Improving Self-Esteem and Self-Confidence

If you are having trouble finding areas you are confident in, try these tips.

• Think of qualities others say you excel in. Even if you believe them slightly, this is a step in the right direction.
• Stop the negative chatter. Shut it up! Start to think of contradictions to these statements.
• Would you say it to a friend? If not, stop saying these statements to yourself.
• Make a list of strengths. Think of what you would say about yourself if you were on a job interview.

The more we recognize our challenges with self-confidence and self-esteem, the more aware we become of improvements that can be made. This is when positive changes occur.

Prevention

Loneliness can hit at almost any time. When Amity Brown separated from her husband of 11 years, for instance, she felt -- understandably --  isolated and sad. "The hardest thing is not having someone with that deep emotional knowledge of me to catch me when I fall," says the 41-year-old photographer based in Oakland, Calif.

It's almost inevitable that losing a spouse or moving to a new town can make you feel lonely; but loneliness can strike even without major life changes. You can be alone without being lonely, or you can feel lonely in a crowd. True loneliness is simply a feeling of being disconnected from others; 5% to 7% of middle-aged and older adults report feeling intense or persistent loneliness.

Recommended Related to Mind, Body, Spirit

By Ellen Welty Yes, you love the woman, but her constant commentary on your haircut, housekeeping, and more is making you nuts. To get her to back off, read on.

"Loneliness is what you say it is. You can't tell somebody you shouldn't be lonely," says Louise Hawkley, PhD, senior research scientist with the Center for Cognitive and Social Neuroscience at the University of Chicago.

Loneliness and Illness

Loneliness is not only emotionally painful; it can harm your health. It's a risk factor for a host of problems: high blood pressure; sleep problems; decreased ability to deal with the stress of daily life; and the body's reduced ability to handle inflammation, leading to conditions such as atherosclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and tendinitis, as well as a weakened immune system, so you're more susceptible to illness. Researchers have yet to identify the exact ways these health problems occur, but they know that loneliness seems to make them worse.

While many of these issues don't show up until middle age or later, the damage begins early, according to Hawkley. Small increases in stress chemicals released into the bloodstream can, over time, damage blood vessels all over the body.

Of course, some lonely times are inevitable in everyone's life, and you don't need to fear them. Think of loneliness as a thirst for companionship, one you can satisfy. Says Hawkley, "It's a feeling that, if it's doing its job, it gets you out there to sate that need to feel connected." 

The Loneliness Cure

Louise Hawkley, PhD, says we should think of loneliness not as a state but as a motivation to get social. Here's how:

Get out and about. You don't have to be best friends with someone to benefit from interaction. Amity Brown, who is separated from her husband, takes walks around her neighborhood, smiling at people she passes. "When I started getting to know the neighborhood and the people around me, I felt like part of a community," she says.

Be selective about making friends. Hawkley points out that if you're desperate for relationships, you may be willing to tolerate unacceptable treatment. Now that Brown is feeling more stable, she says, "I'm more careful when I choose my friends to make sure they're low-drama."

Stay positive. Lonely people tend to expect rejection, which makes it more likely to happen. Social cognitive therapy can help people reframe their thoughts about how others see them.