About Holly W. Smith, LICSW
I’m here to help you find a path forward that is gentle … and works.
I’m a New Hampshire-based therapist who specializes in Grief Therapy for women. I’ve been practicing for more than 25 years, primarily in Hospice and Geriatrics, and I’m more recently certified in Neuropsychotherapy. I enjoy helping my clients gain a deeper understanding of their grief and find meaningful ways to evolve and heal through their journey. I absolutely love my work, and I remain humbled everyday by the women who walk through my door at such a vulnerable time in their life and place trust in me.
Change isn’t easy, especially when you could have never imagined or prepared for the unexpected.
I want you to know that it’s a privilege for me to do this work. I look forward to guiding you through your personal journey in healing. I believe there are new experiences meant just for you in life. You deserve to care for and love yourself in a way that empowers you to move forward.
You're here because you want to move forward but aren’t sure why you feel stuck.
Grief is not 5 stages you must go through or tasks you must complete. Grief is not the same thing as Depression. There is no medication to treat grief. Research in the last decade has significantly changed what we know about grief.
The reason you’re feeling stuck is not that you’re doing something wrong. It is that your entire assumptive world has just changed, completely, and your brain doesn’t simply adjust to this overnight. While your brain is grieving … your body is where the felt emotion lives.
You can talk about your grief and understand it logically in a therapy session, but your body still reacts when you hear that song or you drive down that street and pass your favorite restaurant. You can’t bear to move that chair in the living room or sit in it. You get that pit in your stomach when you encounter something that reminds you of your loss.
Supporting your grieving brain and your grieving body during the therapeutic process helps you relax into a healing journey and feel less worried that there is no hope.
How I work
At the core of my approach to Grief Therapy is a belief that there is indeed life after loss.
My approach centers on the belief that the grief you are feeling and the loss you have been through do not have to stop you from living. It is possible to move forward creating a new life for yourself that honors your life story as a whole and not just individual chapters. There is insight to gain, wisdom to share and a legacy of your own to someday be left for others.
Therapy with me is…
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As your Grief or Burnout Therapist it’s essential that I understand what matters most to you. From here the possibilities are endless.
Grief is messy. There’s no way to rush it. If you push it aside, it’ll only fester and lead to more suffering. If you tend to it over time and even befriend it with loving and kindness, it can show you the way to a wiser sense of self and a more fulfilling life.
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You’re a whole person and tending to your grief means tending to all they ways in which grief may be affecting you — physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.
While I do take a Brain Based approach as a Neuropsychotherapist I will weave in other traditional therapies, such as, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Complicated Grief Therapy (CGT), Internal Family Systems (IFS), Psychodynamic Therapy and Somatic Therapy to help release trauma that is held tightly within the body.
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Grief and Burnout must be shown lots of compassion, but successful therapy requires work. As your Grief and Burnout Therapist, I’ll give you that gentle push and challenge you when I sense that you need it to grow and evolve. I’ll give you feedback and share my thoughts, and I’ll let you know if it might make sense to take a break. There honestly may be times when you need space to incorporate all you have learned into your daily life, independently reflect upon things and practice newly acquired skills. Our time together is valuable, and the ultimate goal is for you to get the most out of it.
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My Training & Education
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I received my Master’s Degree in Social Work from the University of New Hampshire in 2004.
I am a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW) in New Hampshire and Massachusetts and a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in Maine.
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I am a Certified Neuropsychotherapist.
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I am a member of the National Association of Social Workers.
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I have been privileged to work in Hospice and Palliative Care in New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Maine for 15 years now and I continue to see patients to this day. For 10 years prior to this I worked at the local and state level in Massachusetts advocating for the mental health needs of older adults and their families.
My work has always centered around my patients and clients, but also allowed me to love their children, grandchildren and even their beloved pets. I have learned to appreciate life and all that we stand to gain and lose in many unique and sometimes very trying ways over the years.
Get in touch
I’m here to help you connect to a new sense of self and wisdom within.
Click this link to choose a day and time for a free, confidential consultation with me, Holly W. Smith.
I’ll ask a little bit about your story and what you’re looking for in a Grief Therapist. I’ll share how we can work together based on what matters most to you. If you decide to schedule your first session, we’ll set that up on the calendar right away!
Grief may be the loss of one precious life, but it can also be the beautiful remaking of another.
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Grief may be the loss of one precious life, but it can also be the beautiful remaking of another. —