Custom «An Integrated Counselling Approach for Grief and Loss» Essay Paper

Introduction

It is increasingly difficult to ignore the fact that such life issues as grief and loss after the demise of a loved person can be stressful experience for every human. Many people find it difficult to cope with such stress on their own and consult the counselling services. A contemporary counselling practice includes a wide range of techniques and approaches, but their application is often limited. Thus, a need for a generic and integrated approach is apparent in the counselling practice of addressing grief and loss. Moreover, this approach should comply with the ethical and cross-cultural issues of counselling. This aspect is especially important, as clients are usually psychologically vulnerable during the treatment. Furthermore, many practices may imply culturally challenging circumstances; therefore, a need for the integrated counselling approach is also justified with this factor. That is why a new integrated counselling approach should be designed on the basis of the already existing models and techniques of counselling grief and loss. Hence, the integrated counselling approach contains a multitude of similar approaches and addresses the ethical and cross-cultural perspectives.

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The following paper focuses on discussing the existing counselling methods for addressing grief and loss and designing a generic approach, which can be applied to most clients’ cases of grief and loss. Thus, the following study conducts the in-depth literature research for identification of the theoretical framework and practical boundaries of counselling in that regard. Then, the paper develops an integrated counselling approach and outlines the basic criteria for evaluation within the entire life-cycle of the approach. The following study is limited in terms of absence of the experimental and in-field data, thus, its findings will need to be verified in the clinical environment.

Literature Review

A large body of literature has been published on the subject of grief and loss counselling. Scholars and practitioners developed various concepts and approaches to this type of life issue counselling, which is why it is appropriate to provide a more empirical insight in order to formulate an integrated counselling approach. One of such practical notions is suggested by Susan Lendrum and Gabrielle Syme (2004). They assume that the basics of grief and loss counselling are related to a so-called active listening skill. Curiously, this skill includes not only a strong participation in the client’s grief process but also an empathic keeping silent when the situation requires. Lendrum and Syme (2004) argue that a client may not find the appropriate words to express their grief, but it does not necessarily mean that a counsellor is expected to fill the silence. Instead, maintaining silence and practicing careful listening to a client establish a psychologically contractual trust, once a counsellor values a client’s feeling of loss (Murray, 2016). However, such psychological contact can be terminated because of the external noises, unnecessary gestures of the counsellor, facial expressions and distractions due to their personal feelings or attitudes.

A more global approach is, then, suggested by Werner Nell (2009) who argues that experiencing grief and loss can be transformed in anything. Facing a certain experience in a particular way is a matter of personal attitudes, which is why a person may transform their grief into a more positive feeling. In fact, an individual does not associate grief and loss with a factual death of a beloved but regrets that a possibility of a certain common experience is lost forever (Humphrey, 2009). Therefore, a technique of saying good-bye metaphor is applicable when a client needs to recover after the death of their loved one (Nell, 2009). This technique does not have any cultural boundaries, especially while many cultures around the globe recognise communication with the dead relatives. Hence, a client has to be explained that they are still able to fulfil any desires or dreams associated with the deceased. This person is obviously dead, but it is still possible to talk to them, to remember them, even to do something nice for them (Nell, 2009). In order to systematise the process of eventual saying good-bye, a special map is created and it contains all activities necessary for a client to obtain fulfilment of the desires and dreams associated with the deceased.

At the same time, Cooper, O’Hara, Schmid, and Bohart (2013) claim that a general method of person-centred approach is also applicable to the cases of grief and loss. Thus, counselling of these cases includes the following aspects. First of all, a focus on the uniqueness of a client’s experience is important; therefore, it should be actualised for the contemporary session of treatment (Bower, 2011). Likewise, the encouragement and facilitation of human feelings is a central purpose of the person-centred approach. These processes have to be rather diverse and promote self-reliance after going through a process of grief. That is why Mick Cooper et al. (2013) point out the empathic relationship of a counsellor with a client.

As a consequence, William Worden (2009) admits that a client needs to associate the end of their grief with some kind of a positive feeling. It does not mean, however, that not mourning for the deceased implies not caring about them any more. A client has to understand that the deceased still can be remembered; thus, working on the diverse memories is essential for the counsellors (Buckley, 2008). Hence, a counsellor should ask a client about their good memories of the departed first. Then, the questions about what they miss the most about that person, what they do not want to remember and about other matters will create a full image of the departed person (Worden, 2009). Moving from the positive foundation of their memories to the neutral and negative ones will help the client realise that they need to get back to their normal lifestyle. Under the circumstances, the client will anticipate the end of their grieving period and keep a full image of the deceased person in their memory.

In order to address a grief and loss case to the fullest extent, Linda Machin (2014) suggests a range of response to loss model and pluralistic counselling approach. The latter method integrates all existing models, approaches and practices of addressing grief and loss cases in a maximally customised solution. Each client has their own unique experience, which is why a single method can be ineffective for various cases (Corey, 2012). As for the RRL model, it is based on the framework, which underpins a choice of a particular counselling technique. A mechanism of the model’s approaches is presented in the Appendix 1. Thus, Linda Machin (2014) offers a complex vision of the grief and loss cases and argues that the RRL model should meet the following objectives: acknowledging the reality of loss, processing pain of grief, adjusting to the world without the deceased person, and finding a lasting connection with them while directing a patient towards a new life.

Nevertheless, the contemporary practitioners neglect the basic ethical principles of counselling quite often, which is the reason why John Wilson (2014) outlines the following aspects. First of all, a counsellor needs to consider compatibility with a patient. It may imply active listening or person-centred counselling, but a counsellor must be responsive to the client’s concerns. Second, the unconditional positive regard is essential (Corey, 2009). A client deserves a warm, kind and positive attitude towards them regardless of their success in treatment, following a counsellor’s instructions and other. (Wilson, 2014). Third, empathy is a foundation of all counselling approaches; therefore, a counsellor should be supportive in every way possible as clients usually consult the counselling services searching for moral and psychological support.

A different approach is presented by Joel Simon (2010) who considers a solution-focused approach to be the most flexible response to grief and loss cases. First of all, the approach requires creation of the image of the deceased person by telling a life story of that person. The client should not just tell a story but share all images and memories associated with the departed. That is why they do not have to be forced to believe that this person is dead (Pennington, 2013). The main purpose of a solution-focused approach is to lead a person through the process of grief, while acceptance or denial of the person’s death is a matter of theclient’s choice (Simon, 2010). Thus, a counsellor needs to find a solution, which will facilitate creation of a positive image of the deceased in the client’s memory as it will help them to cope with a negative experience.

At the same time, grief pain processing precedes a more general and global issue of grief and loss: getting back to a normal life. Sally Flatteau Taylor (2013) claims that a dual process model is the best assessment of such situations since it keeps a balance between grief pressure and neglect of the memory about the deceased. Sally Taylor (2013) argues that a client has to change their assumptions regarding worldview, which implies a presence of the departed. These assumptions are based on the view of existence, happiness and feeling of security, which is why a client should readjust to their new life. Surprisingly, they have to go on remembering the deceased in order to establish the lasting imaginative bonds: memories, conversations and other activities will substitute grief for adjustment to a new lifestyle.

Integrated Counselling Approach

When applying an intergrated approach, a counsellor is expected to change a client’s outlooks in order to help them adjust to a new life, which does not put the deceased among the living. In regards to ethics and cross-cultural insights of counselling, an integrated counselling approach for grief and loss should consist of three models, which are the most prominent for reaching the goal described above. They are the following: person-centred approach, range of response to loss model and solution-focused techniques (Welfel, 2012). In order to speak about the person-centred approach, the proactive involvement of active listening should be indicated (Clarkson, 2013). This technique is extremely empathetic and underpins the entire psychological contract between a counsellor and a patient. By the same token, life review can be combined with active listening. A client may need to describe and speak about the deceased; thus, a need for their life story and supportive listening are the first step of the integrated counselling approach (Lindsay, 2013).

Life review, however, can be used in terms of the RRL model framework. Thus, the range of response to loss model broadens its framework since it is expected to address grief and loss cases chooosing among various approaches (Jones-Smith, 2014). The choice depends largely on the stage and type of grief stress; therefore, a client who just needs to get rid of depression and obviously does not need to go through the dual process model or saying good-bye metaphor as they already comprehended a need for restoring a normal lifestyle. However, this technique is recommended to be used with the life review method. The principles of integrating suggested that counselling approaches depend on the ethical and cultural insight of every single case of grief and loss (Reeves, 2013). Thus, a counsellor is supposed to make a judgement of a situation prior to choosing a particular complex of approaches, thereby ensuring that there will be an ethical and cross-cultural solution of a client’s case of grief and loss.

Eventually, a solution-focused approach may involve saying good-bye metaphor, as long as this technique facilitates readjustment of a client’s worldview towards a new concept of the deceased person’s presence in their life (Levers, 2012). Provided that solution-focused approach is recommended for usage in the beginning of a treatment course, while saying good-bye metaphor is more applicable to the final stages, it is appropriate to remark that a combination of these approaches creates a case framework (Amis, 2011). A case, which starts with application of the solution-focused approach, should end with saying good-bye metaphor. Still, it is not an indispensable axiom, and integrated counselling approach may suggest other layouts of methods, which comply with ethical and cross-cultural considerations.

Overall, integrated counselling approach is supposed to be regularle evaluated to find the best practices for a regular application. Thus, the integrated counselling approach should meet the following requirements. First, the integrated counselling approach has to address the ethical and cross-cultural issues. Being a cultural-sensitive is a special recommendation to any integrated counselling approach because culture is a way of a human interpretation of certain experiences (Loughran, 2011). Each client has a unique experience; therefore a counsellor has to address client’s problem with regard to this experience. That is why the ethical and cultural orientation of the integrated counselling model is important. Besides, in the event of cultural contradictions, a client will not undergo treatment successfully, which is why they should not be placed in the culturally challenging situations (Bowsell et al., 2010). Thus, the RRL model is one of the central approaches used for designing the integrated counselling approach. Second requirement is a compliance with a context of a contemporary counselling practice (Young & Valach, 2009). The selected integrated approach should be applicable to the majority of cases and follow legal and standard guidelines. Finally, the integrated counselling approach should be consistent with a common scientific sense: it should not contradict common knowledge within the field and traditional understanding of counselling. In addition, the integrated counselling approach needs to use more empirical evidence to prove its credibility, even though its framework addresses the practical side of the concept.

Conclusion

All in all, the paper gave an account of an integrated counselling approach to the issues of grief over the loss of life. The paper conducted a profound literature research in order to establish a theoretical framework for the suggested integrated counselling approach. The study described and discussed the following methods: person-centred approach, solution-focused approach, active listening technique, range of response to loss model and pluralistic approach, life review technique, saying good-bye metaphor and double process model. Subsequently, the paper developed the integrated counselling approach, which consists of the methods depicted in the literature review. A methodological side of the integrated counselling approach suggests that choosing among various approaches is the most reasonable strategy for addressing grief and loss since this life issue is accompanied with numerous factors. Therefore, the study systematised application of integrated methods and outlined the basic criteria for a life-long evaluation of the integrated counselling model. Nevertheless,a standard code of counselling ethics and cross-cultural sensitivity should remain the main foundation of the integrated cultural approach since the paper has identified culture as a way of interpreting life experience.