Grief Treatment: Current Evidence Based Approaches to Care Across the Lifespan – Alissa Drescher

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The need for a revolution in the way mental health providers approach grievers is on the rise. The “quick fix” nature of American culture, a death-denying attitude and an outdated adherence to stage theories has created an epidemic for grievers.

The potential is high to include a formalized diagnosis for Prolonged Grief Disorder in the next revision of the DSM-5®. If this occurs, clinicians will have an even greater responsibility to understand treatment modalities, assessment tools and diagnostic criteria related to grief. Not long ago in American history, those in mourning would be quick to find comfort from family and faith. Yet, as our society shifts away from a faith-orientation and loneliness continues to escalate, clinicians have the unique opportunity to stand in the gap of this crisis and provide a respite for grieving people of all ages.

This recording provides fast and unique treatment tools that can be used in a wide variety of circumstances for grievers of all ages. The new complicated Grief Treatment Model will also be examined for use with individuals facing a more persistent response to grief. This treatment has been studied to have a significantly higher response rate than interpersonal psychotherapy.

1. Examine current models of grief theory that go beyond the five stages and the treatment implications of each model.
2. Explain the unique experience created by different types of loss in relation to assessment and treatment planning.
3. Describe a client’s understanding of death and response to grief from a developmental perspective across the lifespan.
4. Identify how grief impacts the family system (individually and together), and how to better equip them to support each other in grief.
5. Evaluate current and cutting-edge modalities used to treat typical and complicated grief in the clinical setting.
6. Identify specific creative counseling interventions that engage the individual, couple or family in the process of grief.

Grief Theory Beyond Kübler-Ross

• Tasks of Mourning
• Dual Process Model of Coping
• Continuing Bonds Theory
• Grief and Attachment Theory
• Potential criteria for “Persistent Complex Bereavement Disorder”
• Two creative interventions articulating these theories

Circumstances of Bereavement

• Implications of Specific losses
  • Pre-loss factors
  • Relationship influence
  • Type of and proximity to death
  • Disenfranchised losses
  • Living losses

Grief Counseling Strategies Across the Lifespan

• Childhood and adolescence
  • The occurrence of grief
  • Developmental understanding of death
  • Grief responses and adaptation to loss
  • Six creative age appropriate interventions
• Young and middle adulthood
  • Grief circumstances
  • Life stages and individual needs
  • Assessments and interventions
  • Family Systems
    • The family narrative
    • Use the Internal Family Systems Approach
  • Six creative interventions appropriate for middle adulthood
• Older adulthood
  • Type of loss
  • Grief responses and perception of death
  • Treatment strategies based on developmental needs
  • Six creative interventions specific for older adults

Grief Treatment – Current Evidence-Based Approach to Care

• Typical Trajectory Griever
  • Limitations to grief counseling/assessing effectiveness
  • Assessment tools
  • Expressive arts
  • Companioning model
  • Therapeutic presence
  • Narrative therapy
  • Creating space for suffering
  • Limitations of the client-centered approach
• Complicated Griever
  • Assessment tools
  • CBT
  • Complicated Grief Treatment Model
  • Grief and trauma intervention
  • Meaning reconstruction
• Ethical Considerations
  • Socio-cultural context
  • Gender bias
  • Pitfalls in treating the family system
  • Grief in the digital universe
  • Spirituality and grief
  • Personal death anxiety
  • Countertransference
  • The wounded healer
  • Occupational stress
  • The grieving therapist
  • Self-care

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