https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/blog daily 0.75 2021-04-15 https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/blog/the-importance-of-end-of-life-planning monthly 0.5 2021-04-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1618514340999-50ITQGX5FU2932U5SXYN/tolga-ulkan-9k36QqhA0cU-unsplash.jpg Blog - The Importance of End-of-Life Planning Photo by Tolga Ulkan on Unsplash https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/blog/why-social-work monthly 0.5 2021-03-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1616422807777-WOW3DJCZ12MWJTNS0HEX/Copy+of+Why+SW_.png Blog - Why Social Work? - March is Social Work Month! To celebrate, I’m writing today about why I chose social work as my professional field. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1616422698655-EOAE7IU4WNTNQ3D0XLR7/IMG_2710.jpg Blog - Why Social Work? That is how I knew social work was the best career choice for me—it would set me up to be able to continue to do a variety of different types of fulfilling, empowering work. I went off to New York City and completed my Masters in Social Work at Columbia University School of Social Work. https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/blog/grief-resources-during-covid-19 monthly 0.5 2021-02-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1614009332227-U0NT0NIDV0YFYU64482Z/robert-anasch-McX3XuJRsUM-unsplash.jpg Blog - Grief Resources during Covid-19 - There are a great many wonderful resources out there about coping with grief - books, articles, books, blogs, books. So many books. If you come across any that were written before 2020, you may have a similar experience as me, reading them and thinking “Sure, that’s a great idea normally, but Covid…” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1614010127776-4M8259NLCB73CT35SRL4/Grief+Resources+during+Covid-19+Blog.png Blog - Grief Resources during Covid-19 Connect with friends and loved ones via Facetime or similar methods as well as some in-person support depending on circumstances Read some grief books that make you feel seen or understood; write about your feelings and experiences in a journal Harness technology to start or get involved with meaningful projects that honor your loved one’s memory Continue to get grief and loss support via online forums, virtual support groups, and individual telehealth therapy https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/blog/when-to-see-a-therapist-for-grief-or-loss monthly 0.5 2021-01-31 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1612115873767-ROU2VAYHSUEK0RXBOVB4/FD9696CD-5BB1-428E-B7D6-82806618A965_1_105_c.jpeg Blog - When to See a Therapist for Grief or Loss? - I try to make it pretty clear that I don’t believe that grief should be pathologized (treated as psychologically abnormal or unhealthy). Grief is normal. So why would you go to a therapist if your main issue is that you’re grieving a loss? https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/blog/alzheimers-fundraise-success monthly 0.5 2020-12-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1607531506458-TKH658POA90ZJIU0VFO5/%24400+Raised%21.png Blog - Alzheimer’s Fundraise Success https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/blog/alzheimers-caregivers-and-giving-tuesday monthly 0.5 2020-12-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1606856678421-ZE0Y0BQ9OXU85XZFGXP8/7CB7EDFD-B046-43DE-BDB0-6B3FEA2B0D43.jpeg Blog - Alzheimer’s, Caregivers, and Giving Tuesday https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/blog/therapist-book-review-black-widow monthly 0.5 2020-11-17 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1605639598673-KNCUDB6WPGEWA9I6X4GN/IMG_1972.jpg Blog - Therapist Book Review: Black Widow https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1605640023537-JNSV8B3Y5U9FGDT2SSXT/IMG_2014.jpg Blog - 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I’m so glad you’re here. I have had a lifelong interest in mental health and wellness. From the first time I started learning about psychology as a pre-teen, I was hooked. As a social worker, I have intentionally focused my education and experience on considering the whole person in their environment and understanding each individual from their unique worldview. I have been working in the field of mental health since 2004. My professional experience spans from hospice work, to crisis intervention, sexual assault, adoption, and hospital settings. I found that no matter the setting in which I was working, issues of grief and loss kept coming up for the people I was helping. Most recently before starting my own private practice, I spent five years as a hospice social worker supporting dying patients and their family members, and I have sought out further grief and loss training (including studying Prolonged Grief Disorder Treatment from the Center for Prolonged Grief at Columbia University). I am committed to having an open and affirming practice for people of all races, ethnicities, religions, genders, sexualities, and abilities. My pronouns are she/her/hers. My clients appreciate that I bring my whole heart to my work. They feel that I understand that they are the expert of their own grief and loss experiences. They know nothing is off-limits, no thought or feeling will be judged, and that this is a safe place to get it all out. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1603754233178-00APR1CPFG0E82JOXZO2/Open+Path+Logo.png About Kathleen https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/rates daily 0.75 2025-03-19 https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/home daily 1.0 2023-07-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1587146029298-NKMY1EMUQYZ6V2ZKKMIY/IMG_9860.jpg Home - I would love to talk with you about what you're going through and how I can help. Email, call, or fill out the form below to set up a free 15-minute consultation. hello@kathleenmchughakbar.com (201) 228-0227 https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/grief-loss daily 0.75 2022-05-17 https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/faqs daily 0.75 2025-03-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/6186d15f-ac50-479a-a10f-ae821359f9bb/Client+View.png FAQs - Make it stand out Hello there! https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/contact daily 0.75 2021-01-25 https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/bereavement daily 0.75 2022-05-17 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1598199727556-D2CI263BPBWD4K03PKL8/IMG_4716_Original.jpg Bereavement Bereavement is the experience of intense grief due to the death of a loved one. With a significant loss, you know that your life is never going to be the same again. You can feel crazy because you’re inside of a crazy experience. Grief therapy with me is definitely not about “moving on” and “forgetting about it.” Your grief, like your love for the one you lost, will always be with you, although ideally the grief will not always be as difficult to bear as it feels in its sharpest moments. Grief therapy with me is about figuring out how to keep moving forward alongside with your loved one’s memory or spirit, as you work to continually still construct your life. It’s about living your grief experience with as much self kindness, well being, and peace as you can. It is normal for bereavement following a death to be an extremely difficult period, and yet not everyone needs professional therapy at this time. However, sometimes people need or want extra support through the first months or years of their grieving. Also, occasionally, people have an exceptionally difficult time adapting to the loss of a loved one and this is still causing major impairment in their life after a significant amount of time has passed since the death. I use my knowledge of grief and loss counseling to support all types of grievers, whether your loss was fairly recent or you have been existing with your intense grief for a very long time. https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/end-of-life daily 0.75 2020-08-23 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1598199986120-9ZF457IPUAWSE138HFRQ/image-asset.jpeg End of Life We live in a culture that is not yet very comfortable talking about death and end of life issues, and this is almost always to our detriment. Getting some professional support at these times can be very beneficial to your well-being. If you are anticipating your own death, I can help you prepare for what that looks and feels like. We can help you adjust to accepting a terminal diagnosis or starting hospice. I can assist you with areas of advance care planning, including legal and financial matters, and final preparations. We can process what you may want to do or say to anyone in this end stage of life. If your loved one is significantly or terminally ill, you may be dealing with anticipatory grief - the normal mourning that occurs when you’re expecting the death of a loved one. You also may be dealing with ambiguous grief - where your loved one is still physically alive, but their “real self” is already gone due to reasons like dementia. We can make a plan for self-care (caring for the caregiver), process and plan what you want to do before their death, and understand what post-death healing is like. I can help you to make these very difficult times more personally meaningful. You don’t have to go through this alone. https://www.kathleenmchughakbar.com/pregnancy-or-perinatal-loss daily 0.75 2022-05-17 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e8e36b40709484027f8d1d2/1598197163204-1WUSQYYZLRVKIXL6BU23/image-asset.jpeg Pregnancy or Perinatal Loss Pregnancy or perinatal loss includes miscarriage, termination for medical reasons, stillbirth, and infant loss. Pregnancy/perinatal loss is a unique kind of loss because you may not have a lot of time where you “knew” the person that you lost. That doesn’t mean it hurts less. When you lose a pregnancy or an infant, you’re also losing the chance to be a parent to this particular child, and further you’re losing the future that you expected this child--and your family--to have. These types of losses are common but sometimes may feel invisible. As many as 1 in 4 known pregnancies end in miscarriage. Other people often don’t understand the bond you may have felt to this child or they minimize your loss. In the aftermath, you may wrestle with feelings of stigma, shame, blame, or guilt in addition to the sadness. Many people find that counseling after this type of loss can help to validate your emotions and help you feel supported.