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Understanding your mental health

Grief / Adjustment Disorders

Grief is a natural response to loss, not automatically a psychiatric disorder. Significant life changes can also bring distress that feels difficult to manage. Care respects your personal and cultural experience while considering when additional support or treatment may be helpful.

Recognizing the experience

Symptoms you may notice

Experiences vary from person to person. These symptoms can have different causes and are not a diagnostic checklist.

  • Sadness, longing, tearfulness, anger, or waves of emotion after a loss
  • Feeling overwhelmed or persistently worried after a major life change
  • Changes in sleep, appetite, concentration, or interest in usual activities
  • Withdrawing from support or having difficulty managing everyday responsibilities

How daily life can be affected

Bereavement, retirement, illness, caregiving changes, relocation, and relationship transitions can affect identity, connection, and routine. The experience and pace of grieving differ widely. Support is about understanding your needs, not imposing a deadline for feeling better.

Looking at the whole picture

What an evaluation considers

Assessment is a conversation about your history, your health, and what matters to you. Your provider may:

  1. Explore the loss or stressor, its timing, your cultural context, available supports, and what feels most difficult.
  2. Assess daily functioning, sleep, coping, and safety without treating normal grief as a diagnosis by default.
  3. Consider whether depression, an adjustment disorder, prolonged grief, or another condition may be present and whether therapy or other support is indicated.

Support, shaped around you

Recommendations may include grief counseling, psychotherapy referrals, support groups, and practical help rebuilding routines and connection. Medication is not a treatment for ordinary grief itself, but may be considered for a co-occurring condition when clinically appropriate.

Explore Psychiatric Evaluation

Know when to seek help

Warning signs that need attention

Thoughts of suicide, feeling unable to stay safe, escalating substance use, or severe difficulty eating, drinking, or meeting essential needs call for prompt support. You do not have to wait for distress to reach a crisis before asking for help.

Do not wait for a routine appointment in a crisis.
In the U.S., call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department for immediate danger or a medical emergency. For suicidal thoughts or a mental health crisis, call or text 988. Marenova Wellness is not an emergency or crisis service.

Further reading from a public health resource

MedlinePlus: Adjustment Disorder (opens in a new tab)

You may also want to explore

DepressionGeneralized Anxiety
For your understanding, not a diagnosis
This information is provided for educational purposes only and does not replace an individualized psychiatric evaluation, diagnosis, or professional treatment plan.