Perinatal Grief Counselling Oakville
There is a particular kind of grief that the world does not have good language for.
It is not the grief of losing someone you knew for years, someone whose absence leaves a gap in the physical space of your life. It is the grief of losing a future. A person you imagined. A version of your life that existed in your mind with so much detail and so much love, and then did not.
Perinatal grief and loss counselling at Counselling & Co. supports individuals and couples in Oakville and across Ontario who are navigating miscarriage, stillbirth, infant loss, termination for medical reasons (TFMR), or any reproductive loss that continues to affect their daily life, relationships, or sense of self. Grief after reproductive loss is often complicated, isolating, and misunderstood. Together, we create space for the emotions, questions, and experiences that may feel difficult to carry alone.
We offer in-person sessions in Oakville and virtual therapy across Ontario. A free 15-minute Meet and Greet is available as a low-pressure first step.
When the Grief Has Nowhere to Go
The world tends to move quickly past reproductive loss. Especially early loss. People say the right things, briefly, and then life continues. And you are left holding something with no shape, no ritual, no public place to put it.
You might feel grief so heavy it surprises you. You might feel guilt, even though there is nothing you did. You might feel anger at pregnant friends, at your own body, at how unfair all of it is. You might feel relief mixed with grief, and then feel terrible about the relief. You might feel profoundly alone in an experience that few people seem to know how to talk about. You might feel nothing at all for stretches, and then be blindsided somewhere ordinary, the grocery store, a due date that passed quietly.
Perinatal grief can follow:
Miscarriage, at any gestational age
Stillbirth and the loss of a baby during or after delivery
Infant loss in the days, weeks, or months after birth
Termination for medical reasons (TFMR) and the grief that can follow a devastating diagnosis
Recurrent pregnancy loss and the cumulative weight of multiple losses
Grief connected to fertility treatment, IVF, and pregnancies that did not continue
Grief that arrives months or years after a loss that was never fully processed
Your Grief Does Not Need to Justify Itself
One of the most painful things about perinatal loss is how often people feel they do not have the right to grieve as fully as they do.
It was early. You did not know the baby. You can try again. Everything happens for a reason. At least you know you can get pregnant. These words come from kindness and land like minimization. And they can make it harder to let yourself feel what you actually feel, which is a real and significant loss.
At Counselling & Co., we do not need you to justify the size of your grief. We do not measure loss by gestational age or by whether there was a heartbeat or by how long you tried. We hold space for the loss of the future you were already building, the baby you were already loving, and the version of your life that existed in your imagination before that story took a different turn than you ever expected.
Grief rarely unfolds the way people expect it to. Whatever form your loss took, and however long ago it happened, there is room for it here.
What We Work Through Together
Perinatal grief is not one thing. It is layered and specific, and it moves differently in each person and each relationship.
The work here creates space for:
Processing the loss itself: what happened, what you felt, and what you are still carrying
Grief that does not have a clear shape or does not follow any expected timeline
Guilt, self-blame, and the search for a reason that may never come
Anger at your body, at the situation, or at people who do not understand
The impact when you and your partner are grieving differently, grieving at different paces, or struggling to find your way back to one another
Navigating due dates, anniversaries, and the moments that bring it all back
Finding a way to honour and hold the love you have for the baby you lost
Working through the moments when grief feels overwhelming, stuck, or impossible to put into words
Preparing emotionally for the possibility of trying again, and all the fear that comes with it
Grief connected to termination for medical reasons (TFMR), which carries its own particular isolation
We also offer a pregnancy and infant loss support group for those who want to grieve alongside others who understand what this kind of loss feels like from the inside.
How We Sit With It Together
This work is not about moving on. It is about finding a way to carry what happened with more ease, more understanding, and less isolation.
Our therapists work from an emotionally focused, attachment-informed lens and draw from approaches such as Brainspotting and EMDR when helpful. We pay attention not only to the emotions and relationships affected by loss, but also to the ways grief can become held in the body and nervous system. That means we follow your grief rather than direct it. We do not impose a timeline or a framework for how your healing should look. We get curious about your specific experience of this loss, what it meant, what it has taken from you, what remains important to carry forward, and what you need in order to begin finding your footing again.
Some people come in the immediate aftermath of a loss. Some come months or years later, when something has surfaced the grief again. Some come carrying multiple losses. All of it is welcome here, and the pace is entirely yours.
What Can Start to Change
Grief after a reproductive loss does not disappear. But it can shift.
It can shift from something that floods you without warning to something you can feel without being overtaken by it. It can move from a weight you carry alone to something witnessed and held. The guilt and self-blame can begin to loosen when they are named and understood. The relationship with your partner can find its footing again when both of you feel heard.
Over time, counselling for perinatal grief can create more room for:
Feeling the loss without being pulled under by it
Understanding the grief without needing to justify it
Less isolation and more sense of being witnessed in what happened
Less self-blame and more compassion for yourself
A partnership that can hold the loss together rather than each carrying it separately
Space to honour your baby and the love you have for them
Moving toward a future pregnancy, when and if that feels right, with more support and less fear
Perinatal Grief and Loss Counselling in Oakville and Across Ontario
Counselling & Co. offers in-person perinatal grief and loss counselling at our Oakville & Tillsonburg locations, as well as virtual therapy for clients across Ontario.
Our team includes therapists with specialized training in perinatal mental health and grief, including clinicians with certification in Perinatal Mental Health (PMH-C) through Postpartum Support International. We offer complimentary Meet & Greets so you can connect with a therapist and decide whether they feel like the right fit for you. Individual sessions and couples sessions are both available.
We also facilitate a pregnancy and infant loss support group for those who want the support of others who understand this kind of loss from the inside.
We aim to make accessing support as straightforward as possible. Initial sessions are 90 minutes, with ongoing sessions typically 60 minutes. Extended 90-minute sessions are also available when clinically appropriate.
Whenever You Are Ready
There is no right time to reach out after a loss. Some people come in the thick of it. Some come long after, when the grief resurfaces, and they realize it has never had a place to land.
If you are carrying this, we would like to help you carry it a little less alone.
Our complimentary 15-minute Meet & Greet offers an opportunity to connect with a therapist, ask questions, and get a sense of whether the fit feels right for you.
We would be honoured to be part of your village during this time.
Therapists Available
Areas of Care
Miscarriage
Recurrent Pregnancy Loss
Stillbirth
Infant Loss
Termination for Medical Reasons (TFMR)
Loss Associated with Fertility Treatment and IVF
Grief Following a Prenatal Diagnosis
Guilt and Self-Blame After Loss
Feeling Alone in Your Grief
Anxiety and Fear of Future Pregnancy
Pregnancy After Loss
Relationship Impact of Perinatal Grief
Due Date and Anniversary Grief
Grief That Surfaces Long After the Loss
Questions About Perinatal Grief and Loss Counselling
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Perinatal grief counselling is therapy that supports individuals and couples after the loss of a pregnancy or baby. That includes miscarriage, stillbirth, infant loss, termination for medical reasons, and recurrent loss. The work is not about moving through grief on a set timeline. It is about creating space for the grief to be witnessed, understood, and carried with more ease over time.
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Neither. Some people come in the immediate days or weeks after a loss, when they need somewhere to put what just happened. Others come months or years later, when the grief resurfaces, or they realize it was never fully processed. There is no expiration on loss and no threshold of time after which your grief is no longer relevant. Whenever you are ready is the right time.
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Yes. Termination for medical reasons (TFMR) carries a particular kind of grief, one that often includes not only the loss of the baby but the weight of having made an impossible decision under devastating circumstances. That grief is frequently invisible to others and can feel especially isolating. It is fully welcome here, and our therapists hold it with the care it deserves.
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Yes. Partners grieve differently, and those differences can create real distance after a loss. Couples sessions are available for partners who want to process the loss together, find language for what they are each carrying, and support each other through the grief. You can come as a couple, as an individual, or both at different points.
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The pregnancy and infant loss support group at Counselling & Co. offers a space to grieve alongside others who understand this kind of loss from the inside. Some people find that group support alongside individual therapy is especially powerful. Others start with the group before moving into individual work. Details about the group, including timing and how to join, are available on the support group page. The group is open to individuals at many stages of the grief process.
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Grief after reproductive loss does not always move in a straight line. Anniversaries, due dates, future pregnancies, parenting experiences, fertility treatments, or life transitions can bring old grief back to the surface. This does not mean you are moving backwards. It often means the loss is asking for attention in a way it may not have been able to before. Many people seek support months or years after a loss, and their grief is no less important because time has passed.
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Session fees range from $125 to $225 depending on the therapist. Direct billing is available for many insurance plans, including Manulife, Canada Life, and GreenShield Canada. If you're unsure about your coverage, our team is happy to help. We also offer a complimentary 15-minute Meet & Greet so you can connect with a therapist and determine whether the fit feels right for you.
Have you lost touch with yourself or loved ones?
Counselling & Co. is committed to providing therapeutic services that enrich your healing journey and quality of life. We provide a compassionate place to help you:
Feel seen and heard
Strengthen your emotional well-being
Repair your relationships