Grief Counseling in Los Angeles
Someone you love is gone. And everyone around you has moved on except you.
They said it would get easier. It hasn't. The world kept going and you're still standing in the place where everything changed, wondering why you can't seem to move forward. Or maybe you have moved forward on the outside. You're working, parenting, showing up. But inside, something is missing and you can't get it back.
I'm Dr. Jené Verchick, a licensed clinical psychologist with over 26 years of experience. I work with adults and teens throughout California who are navigating grief, whether it's recent or something you've been carrying for years.
What Grief Counseling Looks Like
Grief is not one feeling. It's a hundred feelings that rotate without warning.
Some days it's sadness so heavy you can't get out of bed. Other days it's rage. Other days it's numbness, like you're watching your life from behind glass. Some days you feel fine, and then the guilt of feeling fine hits harder than the grief itself.
People expect grief to follow a timeline. It doesn't. They expect it to look like crying. Sometimes it looks like drinking. Sometimes it looks like working 14-hour days so you don't have to go home to an empty house. Sometimes it looks like picking fights with your partner because the pain needs somewhere to go.
Whatever yours looks like, it's not wrong. And you don't need to be "over it" to start therapy. You just need to stop carrying it alone.
What I Help With
Death of a spouse or partner. The person who was your whole world is gone. You don't know how to be alone. You don't know who you are without them. Everyone says you're strong. You don't feel strong. You feel lost.
Death of a parent. Even when it's expected. Even when the relationship was complicated. Especially when the relationship was complicated, because now there's no chance to fix it, and the grief is tangled up with regret and anger and things you never got to say.
Death of a child. There are no words for this one. I won't pretend there are. What I can offer is a space where you don't have to perform strength or hope or recovery. You can just be in it, with someone who can hold the weight alongside you.
Anticipatory grief. Your parent has dementia. Your spouse has a terminal diagnosis. They're still here, but you're already grieving. This kind of grief is isolating because nobody understands that you're mourning someone who's still alive.
Miscarriage and pregnancy loss. A grief the world minimizes. "At least it was early." "You can try again." These responses erase the reality of what you lost. I don't minimize it. See my infertility and pregnancy loss page for more.
Divorce. The death of a marriage. The death of the future you planned. The grief of divorce is real, even when the divorce was the right decision. Learn more about individual therapy.
Loss of identity. Retirement. Job loss. Kids leaving home. Your body changing. The version of yourself you used to be is gone and you haven't found the next one yet.
Ambiguous loss. Estrangement from a family member who is still alive. A relationship that ended without closure. A friend who disappeared. The grief of losing someone who didn't die is confusing and hard to name.
How I Work with Grief
I'm not going to tell you to be grateful for the time you had. I'm not going to ask you what stage of grief you're in. And I'm not going to rush you toward acceptance.
What I will do:
I'll sit with you in it. Not to fix it. Not to make it better. But to make sure you're not alone with it. Most grieving people are surrounded by people who care but can't handle the weight of what they're carrying. I can.
I'll help you understand what grief is doing to you. The insomnia, the anger, the brain fog, the inability to make decisions, the way you keep replaying the last conversation. These aren't signs you're falling apart. They're signs you loved someone and they're gone.
And when you're ready, not before, I'll help you figure out how to build a life that includes the loss instead of being defined by it. Grief doesn't go away. But it can stop running everything.
26+ Years of Experience
I've sat with people through the worst moments of their lives for over two decades. What I've learned is that grief doesn't need to be fixed. It needs to be witnessed. The people who heal aren't the ones who "get over it." They're the ones who find someone safe enough to fall apart with, so they can eventually put themselves back together in a way that feels true.
What Clients Say
"After my mother died, everyone told me I was handling it so well. I wasn't. I was numb. Eight months later I still felt nothing. Dr. Verchick helped me grieve in a way that didn't require me to fall apart. She understood that in my world, falling apart wasn't an option. She found another way in." -- Brentwood
"My husband died two years ago and I still set the table for two. My friends think I should be dating again. My kids think I should sell the house. Nobody asks me how I'm actually doing. Dr. Verchick does. She's the one person who doesn't need me to be further along than I am." -- Beverly Hills
"I lost a pregnancy at 20 weeks. Everyone said the wrong thing. Dr. Verchick didn't say anything at first. She just let me be devastated without trying to put a silver lining on it. That was the first time I felt like my grief was allowed to be as big as it actually was." -- Manhattan Beach
"My father and I hadn't spoken in five years when he died. The grief was unbearable, but not for the reasons people assumed. I wasn't grieving the father I had. I was grieving the father I never got. Dr. Verchick understood that distinction. It changed everything." -- Encino
Frequently asked questions about Grief Counseling
How do I know if I need grief counseling or if I'm just grieving normally?
There's no such thing as grieving "normally." But if grief is interfering with your ability to function, if you're stuck in a place you can't seem to move through, or if you're carrying it entirely alone, therapy can help. You don't need a diagnosis. You need support.
It's been years since my loss. Is it too late?
No. Grief doesn't expire. Many of my clients come to me years after a loss because the grief was never processed. It just got buried under the demands of daily life. It's never too late.
I'm grieving but I'm also angry. Is that normal?
Completely. Anger is one of the most common and least talked about parts of grief. You might be angry at the person who died, at God, at the doctors, at yourself, at everyone who still has what you lost. All of it is valid.
Do you work with families who are grieving together?
Yes. Grief affects the whole family system. I work with individuals, couples, and families navigating loss.