Grief is a challenging emotion because you may react in different ways that are counter-intuitive to getting the help that you need. One way that some people respond to grief is by pushing away the people who are close to them. This is a time when you can benefit from their support, but your choice to create distance between you and your loved ones will leave you struggling with your grief for longer than you might otherwise. While loved ones are valuable when you're grieving, so too is a grief support professional. Try to embrace the idea of speaking to such an individual, and you'll find that you're able to move through your grief faster. Here are some reasons that you might push your loved ones away during this time.

You Struggle To Open Up

It's possible that you may struggle to talk about feelings as deeply personal as grief with those in your family. Even if you feel that your relationship is close, you may stop short of really sharing from your heart. If you struggle to open up to those around you, it can be easy to push them away during times of grief. You may be frustrated with your inability to share what is going on for you and feel as though you don't want to be around these individuals if you can't properly get support for your grief. A grief support professional is someone to whom you can open up and share whatever you're feeling.

They Might Not Be Good Listeners

It's possible that you want to open up to your family members, but that they aren't emotionally prepared to listen to you. For example, if a family member is also experiencing deep feelings of grief, he or she may be so focused on these feelings that listening to you and helping you is difficult or impossible. It's also possible that some people in your life are uncomfortable with the idea of grief and may make hurtful statements to you such as telling you to "get over it."

They Can't Keep A Secret

While there's nothing to be ashamed about when you're in grief, it can be easy to want to keep this emotion secret. If you have trusted people in your circle of family and friends, you might be fine with sharing what's going on with them. However, there may be other people who can't keep a secret — and you worry that opening up to a certain individual would lead to this person telling stories about your grief to others. You can trust that a grief support professional will keep everything that you say confidential.

It's understandable to struggle to open up to loved ones when you're grieving, and working with a grief support professional may be an easier way to start working through your feelings. 

Share