Grief Therapy in Washington, DC
Grief therapy in Washington, DC when loss has changed everything.
North Star Psychological Services provides grief therapy in Washington, DC near Dupont Circle for people carrying the pain, numbness, confusion, anger, loneliness, or exhaustion that can follow a major loss.
In-person therapy in Dupont Circle and secure virtual therapy for clients in Washington, DC and participating PsyPact states.
What grief can feel like
You may be getting through the day. That does not mean you are okay.
Many people who come to North Star for grief therapy in DC are still working, parenting, managing responsibilities, answering emails, and showing up for other people while privately feeling altered by loss.
From the outside, it may look like you are coping. Inside, time may feel strange, your body may feel heavy, and ordinary moments may suddenly bring waves of sadness, anger, guilt, or longing.
Grief may look like:
- Feeling numb one moment and overwhelmed the next
- Having trouble concentrating, sleeping, eating, or making decisions
- Avoiding places, people, photos, routines, or conversations connected to the loss
- Feeling guilty for what you did, did not do, said, or never had the chance to say
- Wondering why everyone else seems ready for you to be better
At North Star, grief therapy is compassionate, collaborative, and paced with care. We help you make sense of what loss has changed, what still matters, and how to keep living with more support around the pain.
Common signs
Signs grief may be asking for more support
There is no correct timeline for grief. Still, therapy can help when loss is affecting your ability to feel steady, connected, rested, or present in your life.
- Feeling stuck in sadness, anger, guilt, regret, numbness, or disbelief
- Avoiding reminders of the person, relationship, place, role, or future you lost
- Feeling isolated because other people do not know what to say
- Difficulty sleeping, eating, concentrating, working, or making decisions
- Replaying final conversations, medical decisions, conflict, or what if questions
- Feeling detached from friends, family, work, faith, identity, or your own body
- Experiencing grief alongside anxiety, depression, trauma, burnout, or major life transitions
- Feeling pressure to be strong, productive, grateful, or okay before you are ready
- Grieving a loss others do not fully recognize, including estrangement, infertility, divorce, illness, caregiving changes, or identity shifts
- Wondering who you are now that life looks different than it did before
Areas of support
Grief therapy tailored to the loss you are carrying
Grief can follow a death, but it can also emerge when a relationship, hoped-for future, role, ability, community, or sense of identity changes in a way you did not choose.
Loss of a parent, partner, sibling, or friend
We support adults grieving the death of a spouse, partner, parent, child, sibling, close friend, relative, colleague, or another person who shaped their life.
Pregnancy, infant, and fertility loss
Therapy can offer space for miscarriage, stillbirth, infant loss, infertility, unsuccessful fertility treatment, or the loss of a hoped-for path to parenthood.
Sudden, traumatic, or suicide loss
Unexpected, violent, medical, accidental, or suicide-related deaths can bring grief alongside shock, intrusive memories, guilt, anger, fear, or a nervous system that remains on alert.
Anticipatory grief and caregiving
You may begin grieving during serious illness, dementia, aging, medical uncertainty, or caregiving changes, even while you are still making decisions and supporting someone you love.
Divorce, breakup, and estrangement
The end of a relationship or family connection can involve losing daily routines, belonging, trust, shared plans, mutual friends, or the future you expected to have together.
Health, ability, and identity changes
Diagnosis, chronic illness, disability, injury, reproductive change, or a shift in independence can create grief for a former body, role, lifestyle, or sense of self.
Career, retirement, and relocation
Job loss, retirement, professional setbacks, moving, immigration, or leaving a community can affect identity, purpose, stability, relationships, and your sense of where you belong.
Ambiguous or unrecognized grief
Some losses have no clear ending or are not fully recognized by others, including estrangement, missing closure, the loss of a pet, friendship loss, or grieving someone who is still alive but deeply changed.
Prolonged grief, depression, or trauma
When grief feels consuming, frozen, or increasingly connected to hopelessness, withdrawal, anxiety, or trauma symptoms, therapy can help clarify what is happening and what support may be useful.
Our approach
Grief therapy is not about moving on
The goal is not to erase the loss, rush acceptance, or turn grief into a neat lesson. The goal is to help you carry what happened with more support, less isolation, and more room for the rest of your life.
Our clinicians draw from evidence-based and relational therapies including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, EMDR, trauma-informed care, mindfulness-based approaches, and meaning-centered work depending on your needs, history and goals.
Make space for the full story
We begin by understanding the loss, your relationship to what or whom you are grieving, what changed afterward, and how grief is showing up in your body, thoughts, relationships, work, and daily routines.
Support the pain without rushing it
You will have room to feel what has been hard to feel while also building tools for sleep, grounding, boundaries, anniversaries, difficult conversations, guilt, intrusive memories, and moments that catch you off guard.
Find your way forward
Treatment helps you reconnect with meaning, relationships, work, identity, memories, values, and choices that can coexist with grief rather than requiring you to leave the loss behind.
Washington, DC grief therapy
Therapy that understands grief in the pace of DC life
In Washington, DC, many people return to work, caregiving, deadlines, school, policy cycles, leadership roles, and family responsibilities long before they feel emotionally ready. Grief can become something you manage privately while the outside world keeps moving.
Our Dupont Circle therapists work with professionals, federal employees, attorneys, healthcare workers, students, parents, caregivers, nonprofit leaders, and people navigating loss while still carrying many visible responsibilities.
Therapy gives you a place where you do not have to perform resilience. You can be honest about the parts that feel sad, angry, messy, relieved, confused, unfinished, or hard to say out loud.
What to expect
Starting grief therapy at North Star
Begin with a free consultation
Ask about current openings, therapist fit, session format, scheduling, fees, lower-fee options, and any practical concerns before deciding whether to book a first appointment.
Choose a thoughtful match
We consider the kind of loss you are navigating, your goals, preferred therapy format, scheduling needs, clinician availability, and the fee level that may work for you.
Start at a pace that feels manageable
Your first session focuses on your story, current concerns, history, and goals. Together, you and your therapist can discuss what ongoing support may look like and how often to meet.
Practical details
Fees, insurance, scheduling, and therapy options
You should be able to understand the practical side of starting therapy before making a commitment. Current fees depend on the clinician, and availability can change, so your free consultation is also a chance to confirm the details that matter to you.
Current session fees
- Doctorate-level clinician: $280 intake and $230 per ongoing session
- Master's-level clinician: $250 intake and $200 per ongoing session
- Post-doctoral clinician: $220 intake and $185 per ongoing session
- Doctoral-level extern: $125 intake and $75 per ongoing session
- EMDR: $225 for a 60-minute session
Confirm the current rate for your therapist during the consultation.
Insurance and payment
North Star is an out-of-network practice and does not bill insurance directly. We can provide monthly invoices that you may submit to your insurer for possible reimbursement. HSA cards are accepted.
Lower-fee options
Lower-fee therapy may be available with doctoral-level externs or post-doctoral clinicians. Openings vary, so ask about the current options when you contact the practice.
Scheduling and availability
Availability varies by therapist. Some clinicians may offer evening or weekend appointments, and the practice can help you understand which current openings may fit your schedule.
In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Sessions may be available in person at the Dupont Circle office, virtually in Washington, DC and participating PsyPact states, or in a hybrid format depending on therapist availability and clinical fit.
Cancellation policy
North Star asks for at least 24 hours' notice when cancelling. Except in circumstances such as emergencies, illness, or inclement weather, late cancellations are charged the full session fee.
Local therapy near you
In-person grief therapy in Dupont Circle
North Star Psychological Services is located at 1350 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington, DC 20036, directly south of Dupont Circle.
We serve clients from Dupont Circle and nearby neighborhoods, with in-person, virtual and hybrid therapy options.
Questions about grief therapy
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if I need grief therapy?
You may benefit from grief therapy if loss is affecting your sleep, work, relationships, health, concentration, mood, or ability to feel connected to your life. You do not need to wait until you are in crisis. Therapy can help when grief feels overwhelming, isolating, confusing, stuck, or hard to carry alone.
Do you offer in-person grief therapy in Washington, DC?
Yes. North Star offers in-person grief therapy in Dupont Circle, Washington, DC, as well as virtual and hybrid therapy options. Our office is located near the Dupont Circle Metro, making it accessible for clients coming from downtown DC, Georgetown, Logan Circle, Adams Morgan, Foggy Bottom and surrounding neighborhoods.
What happens in grief therapy?
Grief therapy gives you a private space to talk through the loss, understand how grief is affecting you, process difficult memories or emotions, build coping strategies, and reconnect with support, meaning and daily life. The pace depends on your needs. You do not have to tell the story perfectly or know where to begin.
Can therapy help after a sudden or traumatic loss?
Yes. Sudden, violent, unexpected, medical, or otherwise traumatic losses can affect both grief and the nervous system. Therapy may help with shock, intrusive images, guilt, avoidance, panic, anger, numbness, and the feeling that your body or mind is still bracing for danger.
What is the difference between grief and depression?
Grief and depression can overlap, but they are not always the same. Grief often comes in waves and may be closely tied to the loss, while depression can involve more persistent hopelessness, loss of interest, low motivation, sleep or appetite changes, and disconnection from life. A therapist can help you sort through what you are experiencing and what kind of support may help.
How much does grief therapy cost at North Star?
Fees depend on the clinician. Current rates are $280 for an intake and $230 per ongoing session with a doctorate-level clinician; $250 for an intake and $200 per session with a master's-level clinician; $220 for an intake and $185 per session with a post-doctoral clinician; and $125 for an intake and $75 per session with a doctoral-level extern. EMDR is $225 for a 60-minute session. You can confirm the current fee and available options during a free consultation.
Do you accept insurance for grief therapy?
North Star is an out-of-network practice and does not bill insurance directly. We can provide monthly invoices that you may submit to your insurance company for possible reimbursement. Before starting, consider asking your insurer about out-of-network outpatient psychotherapy benefits, deductibles, reimbursement rates, and any required documentation.
Are lower-fee grief therapy options available?
Lower-fee therapy may be available with a doctoral-level extern or post-doctoral clinician. Availability varies, so contact the practice to ask about current openings and which clinician or fee level may be the best fit.
Are evening, weekend, virtual, or hybrid appointments available?
Appointment options vary by therapist. Some clinicians may offer evening or weekend sessions. North Star also offers in-person therapy in Dupont Circle, virtual therapy in Washington, DC and participating PsyPact states, and hybrid therapy depending on therapist availability and clinical fit.
How do I get started?
You can reach out through the contact page to request a free consultation. We will answer your questions, talk through your needs, and help you determine whether North Star is a good fit for grief therapy in Washington, DC.
Ready when you are
You do not have to carry grief alone
If grief has been taking up more room than others can see, we would be glad to help you find support, steadiness and a way forward that honors what you have lost.