Grief & Loss · Earlwood, Inner West

Grief Counselling in Earlwood, Inner West Sydney

Gentle, culturally sensitive grief counselling for the Inner West's diverse community. Supporting families and individuals through loss, bereavement, and life transitions.

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Why Choose This Practice
  • Culturally sensitive approach
  • Family grief support
  • Evening appointments available
  • Medicare rebate $76.15 per session

Getting Here

10 Keith Street, Earlwood NSW 2206. Free street parking on Keith Street and surrounding roads. Bus routes 423 and 426 stop nearby on Homer Street.

Earlwood Hours

Monday & Tuesday: 10am – 8pm
Wednesday: 10am – 2:30pm
Evening appointments available Mon & Tue for those who work during the day.

Earlwood Fees

Medicare rebate: $76.15
Private: $175
60-minute sessions. GP Mental Health Plan required for Medicare.

There's No Right Way to Grieve

One of the most painful things about grief is how misunderstood it is. People expect it to follow neat stages — denial, anger, acceptance — as if there's a checklist you can work through and come out the other side. The reality is grief comes in waves. Some days you function. Other days a song on the radio brings you to your knees.

In the Inner West's close-knit, culturally diverse communities, grief often carries extra weight. Your family may expect you to grieve a certain way — publicly or privately, quickly or slowly. Greek and Italian families might gather around you in ways that feel suffocating when you need space. Other cultures may expect you to carry on as if nothing has changed. Neither is wrong — but navigating those expectations while you're broken open is exhausting.

After 20 years of sitting with people in their grief, I've learned that the most important thing I can do is simply be present. There's no fixing grief. But there is a way through it — and you don't have to find that path alone.

You might benefit from grief support if:

  • Feeling stuck in grief months or years after your loss
  • Guilt about moving forward or experiencing moments of happiness
  • Withdrawing from family and friends who don't understand
  • Physical symptoms — exhaustion, appetite changes, difficulty sleeping
  • Anger that surprises you with its intensity
  • Struggling to find meaning or purpose after loss
Tim Carey – Grief & Bereavement Psychologist at Earlwood, Inner West Sydney

Meet Tim Carey, Your Earlwood Grief Psychologist

I'm Tim Carey, a registered psychologist with over 20 years of experience supporting people through loss and bereavement. From my Earlwood practice at 10 Keith Street, I've walked alongside clients from across the Inner West — Earlwood, Hurstville, Kingsgrove, Bexley, and surrounding communities — during some of the most difficult chapters of their lives.

The Inner West is home to a beautifully diverse community, and I've learned that grief looks different across cultures, families, and individual personalities. I bring cultural sensitivity and genuine respect to every session, whether your grieving process follows traditional rituals or feels entirely your own.

I offer evening appointments on Mondays and Tuesdays until 8pm, because grief doesn't wait for business hours. The practice is on a quiet residential street with free parking — a calm, private space where you can sit with your feelings without rushing back to the world.

AHPRA Registered APS Member Medicare Provider 20+ Years Experience

Grief Doesn't Have a Timeline — But You Don't Have to Carry It Alone

Whether your loss is recent or something you've been carrying quietly for years, there's no wrong time to seek support. A session at my Earlwood practice gives you space to grieve honestly — without platitudes, without pressure, just genuine understanding.

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Medicare rebates available with a GP Mental Health Care Plan · Evening appointments Mon & Tue until 8pm

How I Support Grief at Earlwood

Grief doesn't need to be fixed — it needs to be witnessed, understood, and gently navigated. Here's how I work with people who are grieving at my Earlwood practice.

Grief Counselling

A safe space to express and process your loss without judgment. There's no pressure to "get over it" or perform your grief in any particular way. I listen deeply, hold space for your pain, and help you make sense of what you're going through at your own pace.

Meaning-Making

Finding ways to honour what you've lost while building a life forward. This isn't about moving on or forgetting — it's about integrating your loss into your story in a way that allows you to carry your loved one with you while still living fully.

Acceptance & Commitment Therapy

ACT helps you make room for grief — all of it, the pain, the longing, the anger — while reconnecting with the values and people that still matter. Instead of waiting for grief to pass, we learn to live alongside it with openness and compassion.

Family Grief Support

When a family loses someone, everyone grieves differently — and those differences can create distance at the very time you need each other most. I help families understand each other's grief styles and find ways to grieve together without judgment.

Anticipatory Grief

Grieving a loss before it happens is real and valid — whether you're caring for a parent with dementia, a partner with terminal illness, or watching someone you love slowly decline. I help you prepare for and process expected loss with care and honesty.

Cultural Sensitivity

The Inner West's diverse communities each bring their own grief traditions, rituals, and expectations. I respect and work within your cultural framework — whether that means honouring specific mourning practices or navigating family expectations that feel at odds with your own experience.

Types of Loss I Work With at Earlwood

Bereavement

Loss of a loved one through death, including sudden or expected loss. Whether it was a parent, partner, child, sibling, or close friend — each relationship carries its own unique grief, and each deserves to be honoured fully.

Complicated Grief

Prolonged, intense grief that makes it hard to move forward. When grief doesn't follow the expected trajectory — when it intensifies rather than softening over time — professional support can help you find your way through what feels impossible.

Anticipatory Grief

Grieving a loss before it happens, often with terminal illness or ageing parents. This grief is real and exhausting — you're mourning while simultaneously caring, and the guilt of grieving someone who's still here can be overwhelming.

Disenfranchised Grief

Losses others don't always recognise or validate — miscarriage, pet loss, estrangement from family, loss of a relationship, or loss of identity through illness or life change. These losses deserve the same compassion and support as any other.

Other Services at My Earlwood Practice

Grief often walks alongside other struggles. I provide integrated support across these areas at Earlwood.

Anxiety Treatment

CBT, ACT & exposure therapy

Depression Support

Behavioural activation & ACT

PTSD & Trauma

SIRA accredited care

Addiction & Substance Use

Dual diagnosis support

Closer to the Eastern Suburbs? I also provide grief counselling at my Edgecliff practice, located near Edgecliff Station — with Thursday appointments and different session rates.

You Don't Have to Carry This Alone

Grief can feel isolating — like no one truly understands. You don't need to have the right words. Book a session at Earlwood and let's sit with it together.

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