DBT-Informed Grief Group
*Currently on hold*
Current group dates & cost:
Tues. May 27th - Tues. July 29th (skip the week of July 4th) $65/90 min. group session To honor grief while learning to live meaningfully in the present |
“For in grief nothing "stays put." One keeps on emerging from a phase, but it always recurs. Round and round. Everything repeats. Am I going in circles, or dare I hope I am on a spiral? But if a spiral, am I going up or down it? ―C.S. Lewis, A Grief Observed At Wise Mind Collective, we like dialectics. If you haven’t yet noticed, it’s kind of our thing. We also like standing on the shoulders of giants (translation = we value collective learning). And just as Sir Isaac Newton was onto something so many hundreds of years ago (350 to be exact), so was C.S. Lewis in A Grief Observed. In the spirit of standing on this latter giant’s shoulders: What if grief is actually a ‘both, and’ situation, in which we go in circles and spiral, simultaneously going round and spiraling up and spiraling down? Because what we have learned since 1961 (read: reference to A Grief Observed’s publication date) is that healing is non-linear. Healing is also about repetition. And, as it were, so is skills training. In this group, grief is explained through Rando’s model, which entails the following: Recognizing, Reacting, Recollecting & Re-experiencing, Relinquishing, Readjusting, and finally, Reinvesting. To draw a parallel between the “What” and “How” skills taught in standard DBT mindfulness: the Rs are the “What” of the group, the DBT skills are the “How.” In other words: during this group, you will not only learn about the nature of your loss, but also what to do about it. You will learn to grieve skillfully. |
FAQs:
1. What kind of loss do I need to be experiencing in order to qualify for this group?
Short answer: Any kind of loss that matters to you.
Long answer: Mourning the loss of a loved one is profound and can be a harrowing experience. And, thanks to dialectics, we can honestly―and safely―say, it also does not have a monopoly over grief. To quote our group leader, Anna, “There are many forms of loss that seep into our lives. While many are recognized, others are not—and all matter deeply.” Loss is a part of our everyday experience as humans; subsequently so is grief. Change is constant, and change―even with gain―translates as a type of loss. So, we welcome you to grieve what you need to grieve without judgment: whether that be the death of a loved one or an upcoming “empty nest,” turning a quarter/a half/a full century old (and anywhere before or between) or experiencing unmet expectations…or even something hard to define, like a disenfranchised loss (such as living as a neurodivergent individual in a neurotypical world or surviving narcissistic abuse): we have so much to grieve as humans. May we all be so kind as to make space for each of us, on this front. Definitions of grief, what qualifies as grief, etc., will also be discussed in more depth during the group’s orientation.
2. What’s the difference between this group and your standard DBT classes?
So glad you asked! As you may have noticed, unlike our standard DBT classes, we call this one a group. Even though information―and a lot of it!―is taught in these groups, processing this information is most of the focus, even if at times it’s 49% skill to 51% processing ratio. It’s kind of like how the partner with 51% ownership of a company ultimately calls the shots; the processing is that kind of business partner. That and calling it a “group-class/class-group” is unnecessarily unparsimonious.
While there are many similarities between this group and our standard DBT classes (the leader is Psychwire-trained in DBT and teaches the DBT skills from Linehan’s revised edition of DBT Handouts and Worksheets, participants commit to doing homework (grief-care practice) in between meetings, there is group agenda (see FAQ #4), etc.), there are also some key differences: there’s the whole grief model bit!, skills practice is called grief-care practice and has an added component of grief processing, participants are not required to have an individual therapist (albeit, an initial assessment will help determine if it is recommended), etc.). More of these similarities and differences will be explained during the group orientation.
3. Do I need to have a foundation in DBT skills before joining this class?
While it would be helpful (because, as we like to say around here, “Context matters”), it’s not a prerequisite. Therefore, it is not required.
4. What is the format of the hour-and-a-half group meeting?
Group will begin with a mindfulness exercise (which will introduce a DBT mindfulness skill), followed by a review of the week’s grief-care practice for each person. Then it’s power-point time! A Randos stage will be introduced and discussed, which will lead into DBT skills practice. There will be a break around the mid-point mark of the hour and a half. While there’s a power-point, the Randos and skills portion of the group will still be interactive, so expect to both take notes and talk.
5. How did this class come about?
Ah, a full-circle moment: Anna Kosky stood on the shoulders of giants, that’s how! To elaborate: Anna saw a need and began working on this curriculum during her time at The Middle Path. Over the past several months, Anna has collaborated with other members of our Wise Mind Collective DBT consultation team in order to design and fine-tune the group we are now offering!
Want to learn more about why such a group is so needed in our world right now? Who are we kidding―you know why. So, new question: do you want to join a community of people who both get it and who also recognize their need for safe others as they honor their grief while learning to live meaningfully in the present? Join us Tuesday nights, and we’ll do this together.
Ready to Get Started?
For more information or to set up a free pre-screening assessment, please call us at 423.225.2329 or email us here