Grief Therapy in Texas

Finding steady ground after loss.

Vanessa Fischer, M.A., LPC-S, therapist in Texas working with adults experiencing grief.
Vanessa Fischer, MA, LPC-S, therapist in Texas offering virtual therapy for grief counseling.

Grief is not linear, predictable, or tidy.

It can arrive as waves of sadness, but also as numbness, anger, confusion, or even moments of relief. You may feel disoriented — as though the world continues moving while something inside you has fundamentally shifted.

Grief affects more than emotion. It impacts identity, routine, relationships, sleep, concentration, and your sense of safety in the world.

You may find yourself asking:
• Who am I now?
• Why does this still hurt?
• Why do I feel okay some days and undone the next?

Grief doesn’t follow a timeline. It follows attachment.

When someone or something meaningful is lost, your nervous system and identity must reorganize around that absence. That process takes time — and it often feels messier than people expect.

Therapy offers space to grieve without being rushed, compared, or told to “move forward.”

Grief Is Personal — And You’re Not Alone

No two grief journeys look exactly alike, yet many people share similar experiences after a loss. You may see parts of your own story reflected below.

  • Waves of Sadness

    Grief can come in surges. You might feel relatively steady one moment and overwhelmed the next. Certain dates, places, or memories can trigger emotional intensity.

  • Emotional Numbness

    Instead of crying, you may feel disconnected or flat. Numbness can be your nervous system’s way of protecting you when everything feels like too much.

  • Anger or Irritability

    You may feel frustrated with others, with circumstances, or even with the person you lost. Anger is often a part of grief, even if it feels uncomfortable to admit.

  • Guilt

    You might replay conversations, decisions, or moments, wondering if you could have done something differently. Guilt can linger even when logically you know you did the best you could.

  • Anxiety About Future Loss

    After experiencing loss, the world can feel less stable. You may become more aware of how fragile life feels. Grief often overlaps with anxiety.

  • Difficulty Functioning

    Concentration, sleep, appetite, and motivation can all shift. Tasks that once felt manageable may now feel exhausting.

  • Relationship Strain

    Not everyone grieves the same way. Differences in coping styles can create distance or misunderstanding in families and partnerships.

  • Grieving a Non-Death Loss

    Grief isn’t limited to losing a person. You may be grieving your health, a divorce, infertility, a career change, or the life you imagined. Many individuals navigating life transitions are also processing grief.

Vanessa Fischer, LPC, in Houston, Texas helping adults navigating grief in therapy.

Why Grief Impacts Mental Health So Deeply

Grief is not a problem to solve. It is a process to move through.

Our culture often sends subtle messages that grief should follow a timeline — that after a certain number of weeks or months, you should feel “better.” But grief does not operate on a schedule.

You may hear things like:
• “At least they’re in a better place.”
• “You need to stay strong.”
• “Everything happens for a reason.”

Even well-meaning comments can make you feel alone in your experience.

Grief can also overlap with depression. If you’re noticing persistent hopelessness, withdrawal, or a loss of interest in most things, you may want to explore Therapy for Depression page as well.

Therapy for grief creates space to:
• Honor the relationship or loss
• Express complicated emotions
• Make meaning at your own pace
• Integrate the loss into your life without erasing it

You do not have to “get over it.” You deserve support while you learn how to carry it.

How Grief Counseling Can Help

In our work together, we move gently and intentionally.

We may focus on:
• Processing the story of the loss
• Identifying emotions that feel hard to access or express
• Navigating anniversaries, holidays, and triggers
• Addressing guilt or unresolved conversations
• Rebuilding routines and stability
• Exploring identity shifts
• Finding ways to maintain connection while still moving forward

Therapy may include cognitive-behavioral strategies to address unhelpful thought patterns, mindfulness to regulate overwhelming emotional waves, and values-based work to help you reconnect with what still matters.

Grief work is not about forcing closure. It’s about building steadiness in the presence of change.

Vanessa Fischer, LPC-S, therapist in Houston, Texas offering therapy for grieving adults.
Vanessa Fischer, MA, LPC-S, therapist offering grief therapy in Houston, Texas and online across Texas.

When Grief Feels Integrated Instead of Overwhelming

Grief may always be part of your story. But it doesn’t have to dominate every chapter.

With support, you may find:
• You can talk about your loss without shutting down or apologizing for your tears.
• Memories feel tender instead of shattering.
• Waves of sadness feel survivable.
• You stop judging yourself for “how long” it’s taking.
• You reconnect with parts of yourself that went quiet.
• You allow joy without feeling disloyal.
• You build rituals or meaning that honor what was lost.
• Your world expands again — slowly, gently — without forgetting.

Grief doesn’t disappear. It softens, integrates, and makes room for life alongside it.

Honoring What Was While Making Space for What Is

Grief is a reflection of love, attachment, and meaning. It shows that something mattered deeply.

In therapy, we create space for sadness, anger, relief, confusion — all of it. There is no “right” way to grieve. There is only your way.

My role is not to rush you forward. It is to sit with you while you learn how to live with what has changed.

Vanessa Fischer, MA, LPC-S, therapist in Texas helping clients experiencing grief.

Ready to Begin Grief Counseling in Texas?

If you’re looking for online therapy for grief and loss in Texas and want a space where your experience is honored — not rushed — I’d be honored to support you.

Schedule a free consultation to explore whether working together feels like the right next step.

Contact Me

Grief Therapy FAQs

  • There is no universal timeline. Healing doesn’t mean forgetting — it often means learning how to carry the loss differently.

  • Yes. Grief can begin before a loss occurs, especially with chronic or terminal illness. Therapy can support you through that process.

  • If your grief feels overwhelming, prolonged, isolating, or difficult to process on your own, therapy can help. You don’t need to be “falling apart” to seek support.

  • Grief is rarely simple. It can include relief, anger, regret, numbness, or unresolved conflict. Therapy provides space for the full complexity of your experience without judgment.

  • There is no “should” in grief. Therapy can help you move away from self-judgment and toward self-compassion.

“Grief is the price we pay for love.”

— Queen Elizabeth II