What grief can look like
Grief is a natural response to loss. It can feel heavy, confusing, and at times overwhelming, and it often comes in waves. Intense grief can include the following.1,2
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Yearning and thoughts of the person
Longing for the person, or thoughts and memories that return again and again.1,2
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Disbelief and pain
A sense of disbelief about the loss, and intense emotional pain such as sorrow, anger, or bitterness.1,2
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Loneliness and withdrawal
Intense loneliness, and difficulty re-engaging with friends, interests, or plans for the future.1,2
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Loss of meaning
These reactions can be part of grief at any stage. Most people adapt to a loss over time without professional support.3 Therapy is an option at any point, including when grief feels like too much to carry alone.
Grief that lingers
For some people, grief stays intense and keeps getting in the way of daily life. Prolonged grief disorder is a diagnosis in the DSM-5-TR. For adults it requires that at least 12 months have passed since the death of a close person (6 months for children and adolescents). It also requires intense yearning for the person, or preoccupation with thoughts of them, nearly every day for at least the past month, along with other symptoms and difficulty functioning.1,2
Diagnosis comes from a licensed professional. Your grief does not have to meet these criteria for you to ask for support.
Kinds of loss
People come to therapy after the death of a loved one, the end of a relationship, a change in their health, or the loss of the life they thought they would have. The prolonged grief criteria apply to the death of a close person. Other kinds of loss can also bring lasting pain, and they are just as welcome in therapy.
How therapy for grief works
Lindsey’s practice offers a space to process loss in your own way and at your own pace, with room for grief that is not rushed. Each plan is shaped around what you are dealing with.
- Supportive therapy
A place to talk about the loss at your own pace, without being hurried.
- Mindfulness
Practices for staying grounded in moments that feel hard.
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Looks at the thoughts that can weigh on grief and builds practical ways to respond to them.
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
Builds skills for getting through waves of strong emotion.
- Somatic approaches
Pay attention to how grief feels in the body.
- Self-compassion work
Practice in responding to yourself with more understanding and support.
- Brainspotting and EMDR
Used when parts of the loss feel especially difficult to process.
What the research says
Time helps many people, but not everyone.3
Lindsey’s practice offers supportive therapy, mindfulness, CBT, DBT, somatic approaches, self-compassion work, and, when appropriate, Brainspotting and EMDR. If you think you may have prolonged grief, ask about it on your first call.
Working with Lindsey Capelli
Lindsey Capelli, LPC, NCC, SAC, leads the practice. Grief and loss therapy is offered there, and the areas of focus on her profile include complex trauma and PTSD, anxiety, and mood and personality disorders.
She sees teens and adults, in person and virtually, in the daytime and evening.
Getting started
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Call (732) 440-9330 or send a request through the contact form. Please leave health details out of the form.
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Our care coordinator will reach out to help you schedule.
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Choose where to meet: in person at 55 Gilbert St W, Ste 3202, Tinton Falls, or virtually from anywhere in New Jersey. Virtual sessions are HIPAA-compliant.
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Appointments are available Monday to Friday, 8 am to 7 pm.
Living Well Counseling Center is an out-of-network, private-pay practice. Read the Good Faith Estimate page for fee information.
If you are worried about someone else
People who are grieving often hear advice they did not ask for. You can show up, listen, and let them talk about the person they lost. Offer to help with practical tasks, or with finding a therapist. If you are worried about their safety, call 911 or 988 right away.4
Questions about grief and loss therapy
Is there a right way to grieve?
Grief looks different for each person and does not follow a set timeline. Lindsey’s practice offers a space to grieve in your own way and at your own pace, without rushing it.
How do I know if it is grief or depression?
They can overlap, and they are different. The DSM-5-TR criteria for prolonged grief center on yearning for the person who died, or preoccupation with thoughts of them, and they apply when the symptoms are not better explained by another disorder such as major depression.2 A licensed professional can sort this out with you. The depression therapy page covers depression.
Can I come if my loss was not a death?
Yes. People bring the end of a relationship, a change in health, and the loss of the life they expected to have, alongside the death of a loved one.
Do you use EMDR or Brainspotting for grief?
When parts of the loss feel especially difficult to process, Lindsey may use Brainspotting or EMDR, alongside supportive therapy, self-compassion, and mindfulness.
Do you accept insurance?
Living Well Counseling Center is out-of-network and private pay. You can read fee information on the Good Faith Estimate page.
Start with a conversation.
Call (732) 440-9330, or send a request through the form. Our care coordinator will reach out to help you schedule.
Sources
- Psychiatric News. Special Report: Prolonged Grief Disorder, What You Need to Know. 2023. (opens in a new tab) Accessed October 7, 2026.
- Prigerson HG, et al. Validation of the new DSM-5-TR criteria for prolonged grief disorder and the PG-13-Revised (PG-13-R) scale. World Psychiatry. 2021. (opens in a new tab) Accessed October 7, 2026.
- Frontiers in Psychiatry. Prolonged grief disorder in ICD-11 and DSM-5-TR: differences in prevalence and diagnostic criteria. 2024. (opens in a new tab) Accessed October 7, 2026.
- 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. (opens in a new tab) Accessed October 7, 2026.