10: Grief after Betrayal Trauma

Most people think about grief in connection with death, and certainly there is much to grieve when we lose someone. But when I found out that my decades-long marriage was a sham, I was plunged into the darkest, and most long lasting, grief of my life. Yet, people did not understand what I was experiencing and why. Once again, I felt different and outside. Like my grief was not valid because I was not grappling with losing someone to death.

Though death is hard and tragic, it is something we all realize is the inevitable conclusion of our mortal journey. Though we don't necessarily want death in our lives, we expect death in our lives. Death has context we can understand. However, being betrayed by the person you love most in the world has no context. It's not suppose to happen. There is much to grieve.

When the bright future you had planned for is gone in an instant and when you realize everything you hoped and believed in never existed, it is crushing. There is much to grief. 

When your financial future suddenly becomes unstable because of the choices someone else has made that affect you so deeply. There is much to grief.

In this episode, we will talk about the stages of grief, how to manage those after betrayal trauma, and how it is okay for you to grieve in any way and in timeframe you need. 

#alifefolded #betrayaltrauma #grief #griefhealing #betrayaltraumarecovery