Are you feeling anticipatory grief?

What is anticipatory grief?

Anticipatory grief is best described as a mourning process when you sense that a loss is going to happen, but you are not exactly sure what. Although many folk might associate grief with losing someone you love who has passed away, or perhaps a romantic partner who has deserted you, in reality grief is a much more complex reality.

Struggling with any kind of loss can initiate a grief process. It may be a job loss, moving house, the loss of a pet, or grief that you have lost confidence in your health.

Some, or all of these, can lead to negative thought patterns about things that might never happen. This type of thinking is difficult to come to terms with, and could plunge you into anxiety and stress, mainly because you have a lingering feeling that more grief is bound to happen.

The COVID-19 disaster.

You may have already been battling to cope with anxiety about your health, when the COVID-19 virus disaster unexpectedly hits the world stage. This leads to even greater health anxiety, because suddenly there is a worldwide common loss of normal day-to-day routine, a loss of connection with others, and a traumatic uncertainty about the future.

A mourning process begins to take place when you consider all the things you may lose as a result of this new disaster, and the sense that more loss is yet to come takes hold. You could become obsessed with the idea of loss, making you hyper-sensitive to every little sniff or cough.

The feeling of fearful anticipation is known as anticipatory grief, a condition you may now feel totally unable to handle.

How to recognise whether you have this form of grief.

Here are some signs that you could have unresolved anticipatory grief:

·      You are always on edge as if something bad is about to happen, but you have no idea what it could be.

·      You are super-alert for possible threats, like if someone coughs or sneezes near you, or if the phone rings at an unusual time – you automatically think it is bad news.

·      You are easily frustrated and upset by things you cannot control, such as the local store being out of stock of something you need. Studies have indicated that this is a typical sign of unresolved grief.  

·      You may have a continued obsession with past disappointments or failures that keep you fearful and afraid to move on, just in case you might have to feel that emotional pain again.

·      Grieving for a loss of any description can make you irritable and angry, but even if you do your best to bury the feelings of loss, they will sometimes just come up and make you feel as if a wet blanket has been thrown over you, resulting in a lack of motivation and a type of low-grade depression. 

·      The anxiety about your health shows no signs of letting up, and adds to your feelings of constant insecurity about your health.

No matter what you have lost, it is still a loss, perceived by the mind to be devastating events, and if not resolved, have the potential to cause emotional pain and disrupt your life.

A recommended way to break free from anticipatory grief.

Mental health experts agree that a key way to banish grief and anxiety is by means of hypnotherapy. Hypnosis is able to access the subconscious mind and establish the origin of harmful thoughts causing grief, negativity and anxiety. 

The mindset which encourages the poor thought patterns can be eliminated by hypnotherapy and replaced with a new, positive mindset. The thoughts you think help to determine the direction of your life. If you dwell on defeat you will never be able to move forward and leave the past behind. 

Hypnosis will teach you how to think powerful thoughts that take you away from anxiety and rebuild your confidence and esteem.