Managing Emotions and Grief from and within COVID19Managing Emotions and Grief from and within COVID19
Horizon Heart to Heart
Host Christina Pearl talks with counsellor Kathy Lisborg about grief, loss of normal life and isolation during COVID-19, linking these experiences with mental health and addiction risk. They share simple coping tools, signs that extra support might be needed and how telehealth counselling can help.
0:00•29 May 2020
Managing Grief and COVID-19: A Candid Conversation with Kathy Lisborg
Episode Overview
- Grief during COVID-19 can feel similar to losing a loved one, as people experience shock, confusion and a loss of normal routines.
- Daily rituals such as shopping, church, family gatherings and coffee with friends are themselves losses, and many usual grief rituals are unavailable.
- Moving between feeling grief and taking breaks from it is healthy, but avoiding emotions completely can increase the risk of addiction or relapse.
- Self-care can mean asking directly for connection, setting boundaries and taking life in small, manageable steps, not just exercise or pampering.
- Telehealth and phone counselling offer an accessible way to get support from home, which can be especially helpful for people who feel anxious about leaving the house.
“We’re grieving the loss of these daily rituals without being able to have grief rituals to help us through it.”
How do people find hope in the darkest times? This conversation from Horizon Heart to Heart takes that question head-on by talking honestly about grief, anxiety and loneliness during COVID-19. Host Christina Pearl chats with mental health counsellor and licensed clinical social worker Kathy Lisborg from Horizon Health Services. Kathy specialises in grief, trauma and working with people who live with both mental health and addiction issues, so you’ll hear relatable examples mixed with clear explanations rather than jargon.
Kathy compares the emotional shock of the pandemic to bereavement, describing how routines vanished overnight and left many people feeling disoriented. She points out, “We’re grieving the loss of these daily rituals without being able to have grief rituals to help us through it,” capturing why simple things like shopping, family dinners or church suddenly feel so heavy.
You’ll hear about classic grief ideas such as Elizabeth Kübler-Ross’s stages, and the dual process model that says it’s healthy to move between feeling your pain and taking breaks from it. Kathy also explains why grief can increase the risk of addiction or relapse, especially when people are scared of feeling sad and reach for substances to numb out.
Practical tips are woven throughout: mindfulness, taking life in “small bite sizes”, asking directly for connection, and giving yourself permission to say no when yet another Zoom chat feels like too much. Kathy stresses that sadness is a normal part of grief, but flags clear warning signs for when it’s time to seek professional help.
The episode also breaks down how telehealth and phone counselling work, and why talking to a counsellor from your own living room can feel safer and easier than walking into a clinic for the first time. If you’ve been feeling off, stuck or tearful during COVID-19 and wondering if that’s “normal”, this gentle, honest chat might be exactly the reassurance you’ve been waiting for.
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