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Cara Grosset, MSW, PhD, RSW, CT/FT
I have worked as a Registered Social Worker for over 30 years and have had the privilege to work with and learn from hundreds of people coping with life's transitions. Throughout my career I have worked with people of all ages and abilities, with a focus on grief and/or trauma related to loss through death. Although grief is most often associated with death, there are many life losses that we experience that can also result in grief reactions, such as the end of a relationship, employment changes, infertility, moving, loss of a pet, a change in abilities, etc. I view grief as an adaptive response to loss, one which can challenge our coping across many life domains, including emotional, physical, cognitive, behavioural, social, and spiritual, particularly when trauma accompanies the death. I work from a trauma-informed, anti-oppressive, and relational framework that puts your needs at the centre of our work. I believe that we can transform our losses in ways that inform and bring meaning to our lives. I am trained in a number of therapeutic approaches including solution-focused, narrative, cognitive behavioural, systems, attachment, and dialectical behaviour models. My grief counselling approach is guided by a trauma-informed approach, attachment theory, continuing bonds, creative expressions, and narrative therapy. We will work together to determine the best approach or combination of approaches to meet your unique needs.
Professionally, I have worked in child protection, mental health, child custody and access, program development, community-based bereavement groups, private practice, and as an educator at the college and university levels. I teach undergraduate and graduate courses in death, dying and bereavement, palliative care, disability studies, social work practice, and group work at King's University College at Western University and Wilfrid Laurier University. I have been a professional consultant with Bereaved Families of Ontario, Dr. Bob Kemp Hospice, MADD Canada (Youth Victims Program), and Hummingbird Centre for Hope. Volunteering is important to me and I have been a mental health member of the Brant County Fire and Ambulance Peer CISM team since 2003, a volunteer with Camp Quality Northern Ontario, and contributed to the development of content for griefstories.org (supporting people living with intellectual disabilities) as well as contributing to the grief and bereavement content of the Intellectual and Developmental Disability (IDD) Palliative Care Toolkit (Ontario).
Personally, I have experienced numerous transitions throughout my life. I lived in three different provinces throughout my childhood, often changing schools and having to navigate many associated changes. I have experienced numerous losses, most notably the sudden death of my father when I was 22 years old. This experience, along with my training and work as a social worker, informs my interest and commitment to provide research-informed quality bereavement support and grief education for lay people and professionals alike across varying age groups and abilities. I live near Paris, ON, with my husband and we have a grown daughter.
I look forward to hearing from you!
Education
PhD, Social Work, Wilfrid Laurier University. Dissertation Research: “Deep in the Shadows of Loss: An Exploration of Grief, Mourning, and Intellectual Disability”, 2023.
Bachelor of Education in Adult Education with Distinction, Brock University, 2012.
Master of Social Work, University of Toronto, 1993.
Bachelor of Social Work with Academic Honours, Toronto Metropolitan University, 1991.
Certifications
Registered Social Worker (RSW) in good standing with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers (OCSWSSW).
Certification (CT) & Fellow in Thanatology (FT), Association for Death Education and Counselling (ADEC).
Instructional Skills Workshop (ISW) certificate (2019).
Working Minds (Road to Mental Readiness) (2019).
Dignity Therapy in End-of-Life Care (2017).
Certified Laughter Yoga Leader.
Helpful Resources
Canadian Virtual Hospice has developed several websites with learning modules addressing numerous end-of-life and grief topics
https://mygrief.ca/ Module 21 addresses grief support for people living with intellectual disabilities
https://livingmyculture.ca/culture/
https://www.virtualhospice.ca/2slgbtq
https://www.virtualhospice.ca/caregiving
Grief Stories - a website where grief stories are shared to foster connection and assist with coping with grief. Video content, podcasts, and blogs.
What's Your Grief - a website about grief that promotes grief education, exploration, and expression in both practical and creative ways.
Children's Grief Support for Individuals Living with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: A Clinical Perspective
Publications
Grosset, C. (2023). Deep in the shadows of loss: An exploration of grief, mourning, and intellectual disability. Dissertation. https://scholars.wlu.ca/etd/2516/
Lead Developer of learning module, Supporting someone with intellectual disabilities. https://mygrief.ca/mod/lesson/view.php?id=1065
Mfoafo M’Carthy, M., Grosset, C., Stalker, C., Dullart, I., & McColl, L. (2018). An Exploratory Study of the Use of Community Treatment Orders with Clients of the Guelph ACT Team. Social Work in Mental Health, 16(6), 644-661.
Grosset, C., Frensch, K., Cameron, G., & Preyde, M. (2018). Perceptions of Long-Term Community Adaptation of Delinquent Young Adults Who Graduated from Children’s Residential Mental Health Treatment. Child & Adolescent Social Work Journal, 35 (3), 231-241.
Karki, K., Chi, M., Gokani, R., Grosset, C., Vasik, J., & Kumsa, M.K. (2018). Entering Precarious Job Markets in the Era of Austerity Measures: The Perceptions of Graduating MSW Students. Critical and Radical Social Work Journal, 6(3), 291-310.
Helpful Resources
Canadian Virtual Hospice has developed several websites with learning modules addressing numerous end-of-life and grief topics
https://mygrief.ca/ Module 21 addresses grief support for people living with intellectual disabilities
https://livingmyculture.ca/culture/
https://www.virtualhospice.ca/2slgbtq
https://www.virtualhospice.ca/caregiving
Grief Stories - a website where grief stories are shared to foster connection and assist with coping with grief. Video content, podcasts, and blogs.
What's Your Grief - a website about grief that promotes grief education, exploration, and expression in both practical and creative ways.
Children's Grief Support for Individuals Living with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: A Clinical Perspective
How To Take Care Of Yourself When You're Grieving, According To Grief Therapists
https://apple.news/A780wv8ouT3GKl47ysjLeyw
Four Corners, a book about sibling grief by Erin Leigh Nigh