Liminal Loss: A Space for Non-Death Loss
- Grounded Grief
- Oct 19, 2024
- 3 min read
When Your Grief Doesn't Fit Traditional Spaces
Sometimes it's hard to find a place to process the grief of those things that don't fit easily into traditional grief group spaces.
Are you grieving a loss of an ability or a major life shift? Are you grieving the state of the world? Our climate? Are you grieving a life transition? Are you grieving the way your life is not what you expected it to be? Are you grieving something that is just hard to name?
If any of these questions resonate, this workshop is for you.
Introducing: Liminal Loss
Join us for Liminal Loss: A Space for Non-Death Loss—a live workshop that honors the importance of holding space for grief that exists in the in-between, the unnamed, the losses that don't come with obituaries or condolence cards.
What Is Non-Death Loss?
Non-death loss encompasses all the losses we experience that aren't about someone dying, yet leave us grieving nonetheless:
Loss of ability - Chronic illness, disability, injury, or aging that changes what your body can do
Loss of identity - Job loss, retirement, loss of role (like when kids leave home)
Loss of dreams - When life doesn't unfold the way you expected or hoped
Loss of place - Moving, displacement, loss of home or homeland
Loss of relationships - Estrangement, divorce, friendship endings
Collective losses - The state of the world, climate grief, political grief
Ambiguous losses - Those losses that are hard to name or explain but are deeply felt
These losses are real. They matter. And they deserve space to be witnessed and honored.
Why "Liminal"?
Liminal means existing in a transitional or in-between state. It's the threshold space—no longer here, not yet there.
Non-death losses often live in this liminal space. You're grieving something, but there's no clear before-and-after, no ritual, no cultural container for what you're experiencing. You might even wonder: Am I allowed to call this grief?
The answer is yes. Absolutely yes.
What to Expect
This 1-hour live workshop will provide:
Discussion - Exploring the unique nature of non-death loss and how it differs from (and overlaps with) death loss
Education - Understanding why non-death losses are often disenfranchised and how to validate your own experience
Space - Room to name and honor the losses you're carrying
Community - Connection with others who are also navigating losses that are hard to name or explain
Witnessing - The powerful experience of having your grief seen and validated
This Is Not Therapy, But It Is Healing
This workshop is an educational and supportive space, not a therapy group. However, having your experience validated, named, and witnessed in community can be deeply healing in itself.
You'll leave with:
Language for losses that felt previously unnamed
Permission to grieve things that don't fit traditional definitions
Connection with others who understand
Resources for continued support
Why This Matters
In a culture that often only recognizes death as "legitimate" grief, non-death losses are frequently minimized or dismissed. You might hear:
"At least no one died"
"Just be grateful for what you have"
"Everything happens for a reason"
"You'll bounce back"
These responses, while often well-intentioned, leave us feeling even more isolated in our grief.
This workshop creates a different kind of space—one where your grief doesn't need to justify itself or compete with other kinds of loss. It simply gets to be acknowledged and held.
Led by Katherine Hatch, MSW, LCSW
Katherine Hatch is the founder of Grounded Grief and has extensive experience working with all forms of grief and loss. She understands that grief is not hierarchical—that non-death losses can be just as devastating as death losses, and that the absence of cultural recognition often makes them harder to bear.
Register Now
When: Monday, October 21, 2024
Time: 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM PST / 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM EST
Where: Online (Zoom link provided upon registration)
Space may be limited to maintain an intimate environment where everyone can be heard.
You Don't Have to Carry This Alone
If you've been carrying a loss that doesn't have a name, or grieving something that feels like it "shouldn't" count as grief—this is your invitation to bring it into the light.
Your grief is valid. Your loss is real. And you deserve a space to honor it.
We look forward to having you.
Liminal losses are still losses. And they deserve to be grieved. 💚
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