Bereavement counselling for businesses

Bereavement can have a huge impact on the emotional and psychological wellbeing of a person. The death of a loved one – whether a parent, a partner or, unthinkably, a child – is an experience no one can be fully prepared to deal with. However, alongside this, it is something we will all experience at some point in our lives – grief through bereavement, which is the universal leveller. The feelings associated with grief are similar to the feelings of depression, and it can make continuing with normal tasks, such as going to work, a huge struggle.

Whether you’re a small or large organisation, making sure your staff are supported when going through bereavement plays an important role in the wellbeing of your team, and in ensuring the continuity of your business.

What is bereavement?

Bereavement is the experience of losing someone close to us through their death. It is an encounter that all of us are likely to go through at some point in our lives, often multiple times.

To grieve is the process that we actively undertake to work through the complex range of emotions that bereavement can bring up for us. Bereavement is not a mental health issue, however, if not attended to and ‘worked through’, our grief through bereavement can become ‘stuck’ or problematic, and manifest in a range of mental health issues including depression and anxiety.

If a staff member has experienced a close bereavement and is struggling to work through their grief, psychological support such as corporate bereavement counselling is available with Brighton and Hove Psychotherapy.

How can bereavement in the workplace have an impact?

Losing someone close to us can trigger a period of intense and prolonged grief defined by a range of emotions as we slowly and gradually adjust to the loss. Losing a loved one can be emotionally shocking, whether that be a partner, a family member, a friend, a pet, or a work colleague.

Some of the different symptoms that can be seen or experienced during bereavement include:

• Shock and numbness, often described as being ‘in a daze’
• Overwhelming sadness
• Depression
• Exhaustion or tiredness
• Anger towards the person lost often expressed as anger in general
• Guilt

How we experience grief and for how long will vary from person to person. There is no ‘right feeling’ nor ‘correct period’ of grieving. Whilst some people may find that they have adequate support in their lives to work through their grief and welcome the structure of ‘normal’ life, for others more support is required. It is not uncommon for those who are struggling to cope with their grief to feel the need to hide it, as they may believe that their experience is ‘wrong’ or ‘over the top’.

How we can help

Brighton and Hove Psychotherapy provides a well-planned and tailored approach to bereavement counselling for businesses. Our bereavement counselling offers help, not only to bereaved employees to cope with their loss, but will support management through their staff’s bereavement too.

For deaths that impact multiple staff members, such as a death in the workplace, we offer bespoke treatments for teams and departments such as individual or group sessions.

Bereavement counselling for businesses can help your staff deal with loss and support them in returning to work, making the transition back into normal working life easier. We can offer bespoke help to any organisation to help single staff members during personal loss or roll out general support for workplace deaths including the death of a colleague.

Corporate counselling for the death of a colleague

The death of an employee can have an impact on the whole workforce. It can be especially difficult in instances where the death is sudden or unexpected, or if there are friends and family of the employee at the same workplace.

Brighton and Hove Psychotherapy offers expert corporate counselling services for those who have lost a work friend. Our highly experienced and qualified practitioners can deliver first-class support for staff at all levels of your organisation.

Our psychotherapists and counsellors are trained to deal with many types of losses and have helped many staff members and businesses cope with death. Our practices are located in Lewes and Hove with clients spanning across Sussex and London. To discuss how we can help your business function following the death of a staff member or staff member’s loved ones, get in touch now to book a consultation.