Trauma & Grief
Adjustment Disorder
Distress that arrives within three months of a significant change, such as a breakup, job loss, illness or move, and outweighs what would be expected.
What it can feel like
- Low mood or anxiety starting after a life change
- Difficulty concentrating or making decisions
- Sleep problems and restlessness
- Feeling overwhelmed by ordinary tasks
- Withdrawal, or conflict with people around you
Not everyone has every symptom, and you do not need a label to deserve support.
Things that help
Name the change out loud
Naming what happened, even if others think it is small, reduces the sense that you are simply failing to cope.
Restore one routine
When structure collapses, one fixed anchor such as a walk or a meal time holds the day together.
Break the problem into parts
Separate what you can solve, what needs time, and what needs help. Everything at once is unworkable.
Want to actually do these? Save them to your practices and tick them off as you go.
Add to my practicesWhen to reach for more support
See a GP if distress is not easing after a few weeks or you are not functioning. Short-term therapy works well.
Often looked at together
Complex PTSD
Prolonged or repeated trauma, often in childhood or in a relationship, that shapes how safe, worthy and in control you feel as a person.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
A lasting stress response after a traumatic event, where the threat keeps replaying in the body long after it has ended.
Prolonged Grief Disorder
Grief that stays acute and disabling for over a year, where the loss dominates daily life and normal life does not resume.