A wilted pink rose against a dark background. Represents grief counseling in Seattle. — Image from Unsplash by Nancy Hughes 7/17/25

How is Traumatic Loss Different from Other Kinds of Loss?

Any kind of grief or loss is tough. A traumatic loss is different from other losses in the way that it’s often sudden and without warning. Due to this sudden nature, traumatic losses typically are experienced by younger people. It’s important to acknowledge a loss as traumatic because such losses can have more severe and longer impacts. Using a trauma informed lens to examine grief and loss can facilitate deeper insight into peoples’ relationships to suffering and healing. Traumatic loss can happen in a multitude of ways, it can mean the sudden death of a person, but there are also other losses that don’t have to do with death or bereavement.

Examples of Traumatic Loss

I will highlight some examples that I’ve worked with that I believe highlight the sudden and shocking nature of traumatic loss.

· Discovery of a degenerative or terminal diagnosis.

· Sudden death by accident, injury, disaster, violence.

· Violence inflicted by others or the self.

· Sudden death of a young person who was otherwise healthy.

· Sudden change in abilities (become paralyzed, loose limb, etc.)

· Pregnancy and Infant Loss.

· Intense suffering.

· Loss of resources due to disaster, accident, theft, or violence.

· Medical Trauma

What Are the Impacts of Traumatic Loss?

Grief symptoms are typical in any kind of loss. Traumatic loss might lead you to experience intrusive thoughts of the event(s), develop intense emotional responses such as fear, anger or guilt. If the loss is perceived as preventable, anger might be the predominant response. You may question your spiritual or religious beliefs and general outlook on life. You may struggle to fully comprehend and accept what happened. This could take the form of intense rumination and feelings of guilt or shame, as if you could’ve prevented the loss.

Traumatic loss forces people to examine previously held beliefs immediately. If nothing before has you to examine your beliefs critically, this could potentially shatter your understanding of the world. The presence of a trauma reaction makes it difficult to process and accept the loss. Of course, this kind of loss doesn’t exist in a vacuum, and can be exacerbated by other contextual factors that could also be traumatic. The human nervous system is cumulative and therefore when a traumatic loss happens, any other stressors or concerns will only make healing more challenging. You might start judging your ability to cope and create toxic narratives towards yourself. Relationships tend to suffer when your past ways of coping, and past worldviews have been shattered. Every area of life, whether it’s work, play, health, caregiving, it can all be negatively impacted by traumatic loss.

In attempts to grasp at control, you might grasp onto holding your grief rather than moving forward beside your emotions. While this is understandable behavior, it ultimately only keeps you stuck.

An empty park bench next to a grass lawn in a park. Represents grief and loss therapy Seattle — Image from Unsplash by Ann Eel 7/17/25

Paths to Healing: Grief Counseling Seattle

Healing from traumatic loss is possible. It’s important to have a provider who has experience dealing with such. Below are some examples of topics that need to be addressed in therapy.

Worldview:

As mentioned earlier, traumatic loss can rock your worldview, either by confirming what you already believed or by shattering your previous beliefs. It’s important to examine this directly and incorporate the loss into a cohesive worldview that recognizes the complexity of life.

Reality:

This has to do with acceptance that the loss is real. You could get stuck in denial or delusion to cope with incomprehensible loss.

Meaning Making:

When a traumatic loss happens, you may feel like it’s the only thing your brain can focus on. When thinking about stories, it’s as if your entire life’s book is focused on this single event. A goal of exploring meaning making is to understand how this loss fits into the greater story of your life. How it’s a chapter, rather than the entire book. It’s an influential chapter, yet it’s part of a bigger story.

Spiritual or Religious Life:

Part of examining the impact traumatic loss has on your worldview, is the impact it has on your religious or spiritual beliefs. Such beliefs are commonly impacted and challenged in some way. It’s helpful to say things out loud that might be happening in your head or heart.

Guilt/Blame:

If the traumatic loss was perceived as preventable, you may experience blame or guilt towards others or yourself. It’s easy to get stuck here and to believe you could’ve influenced a different outcome. It’s a ways of attempting to control something that feels so out of control. Blame, especially self-blame can serve of purpose of trying to understand something that is beyond painful.

An image full of tea candle lights, all lit in the dark. Represents Trauma Therapy Seattle. — Image from Unsplash by Mike Labrum 7/17/25

Relationship to Suffering:

During times when suffering feels overwhelming, therapy can be a place to break it down and examine it in smaller parts. Part of this is remembering the good times aren’t invalidated by the difficult times. Traumatic memories don’t negate positive ones. Exploring your relationship to suffering throughout your life can shed light on assumptions and beliefs that may be impacting healing in the present. Therapy can also focus on what actions can be done and what realistic hope is possible.

Don’t Face Traumatic Loss Alone—Access Grief Counseling in Seattle Today

Traumatic loss produces a specific kind of grief. Know that if you felt like this blog describes what you are experiencing, you aren’t alone. Therapy can help you process overwhelming emotions, hold space for unimaginable pain, and help you build a life while honoring your loss. Learn about other kinds of losses in other blog posts:

Medical Mental Health and Grief

Reproductive Mental Health and Grief

Heartbreak During a Breakup

Family Grief