Migration Grief and Ambiguous Loss

What is Migration Grief and Ambiguous Loss?

Name what was left behind when you moved, including losses others may not see. Moving can involve losses without a clear ending: people, places, status, language and identity. These losses are real even when the move was chosen.

When to use it

• Clients navigating two or more cultures
• Newcomers, refugees and second-generation clients
• Family pressure, stigma or shame about seeking help
• Experiences of racism or exclusion

How to use it in session

1. Explain the purpose and check that the client wants to do this.
2. Complete the table: what i lost or left behind, what i miss most, how i carry it now.
3. People or places that are “here but not here” for me.
4. Ways I keep connection with home.
5. What I have gained, without denying what I lost.
6. Agree one small next step.

Clinician tips

• Ask what these ideas mean in the client’s own culture and family; do not assume.
• Avoid framing family closeness or duty as a problem to fix.
• Invite the client to use any language or word that fits.

Sharing with clients

Members can download the PDF to print or email, or copy a private client link from the download box. Your client opens the link and downloads the worksheet on any device. No client account is needed, and nothing your client writes is stored on TherapyAid.

References

This worksheet is an educational tool for use by, or under the guidance of, a licensed or registered mental-health professional. It is not a diagnostic instrument or a substitute for clinical judgement. If a client is in crisis in Canada, call or text 9-8-8 or call 9-1-1.