Wendt Center for Loss & Healing
DC's grief and trauma center — individual and group therapy for children, youth, and adults, including support after overdose and violent loss.
Grief Support Washington, DC
Grief support groups in Washington
Real, local places to take your grief in Washington — starting with the city's dedicated grief organizations. The Washington area has 5 Medicare-certified hospice programs in this metro alone, every one required to offer bereavement support — and the 1 nonprofit ones below are where free community grief groups usually live.
Local & Verified
Washington’s dedicated grief organizations
Established local centers whose whole mission is grief support.
Capital Caring Health Grief Support
Free individual, family, and group grief counseling plus children's grief camps across DC, Maryland, and Northern Virginia — no hospice connection required.
The Hospice Route
Hospice grief programs open to the Washington community
Every Medicare-certified hospice must offer bereavement support, and nonprofit hospices in particular usually run free grief groups open to anyone — whether or not your person was in their care. Call and ask for the bereavement coordinator.
- Capital HospiceWashington, DC · Nonprofit · Medicare-certified since 1986 · (202) 244-8300
- Vitas Innovative Hospice Care of Greater Wash, DcWashington, DC · For-profit · Medicare-certified since 2006 · (202) 414-5411
- Professional Healthcare Resources of Washington DcWashington, DC · For-profit · Medicare-certified since 2010 · (202) 955-8355
- Accentcare Hospice & Palliative Care of WashingtonWashington, DC · For-profit · Medicare-certified since 2023 · (804) 690-2412
- Affinity Care of Dc LLCWashington, DC · For-profit · Medicare-certified since 2023
Loss-Specific & Meeting Locally
National networks with groups in the Washington area
These come straight from each network’s own chapter locator — real groups, run by people who have lived the same loss.
After the death of a child · The Compassionate Friends
- TCF of the District of ColumbiaWashington, DC
- Arlington ChapterArlington, VA
- TCF Potomac ChapterPotomac, MD
- TCF of Prince George's County ChapterBowie, MD
- TCF Fairfax Chapter 1Fairfax Station, VA
- Southern Maryland Chapter 2Waldorf, MD
- TCF of DullesAshburn, VA
- TCF of the Patapsco ValleyEllicott City, MD
- Leesburg ChapterLeesburg, VA
- Southern Maryland Chapter 1Prince Frederick, MD
Peer groups of bereaved parents, grandparents, and siblings. More support after the loss of a child →
After a suicide loss · Survivors of Suicide Loss groups
- Afterwards. A NOVA suicide support group.Sterling, VA
- Artful GriefCockeysville, MD
- Life After Loss Support GroupManassas, VA
- Suicide Bereavement GroupBethesda, MD
- SOS BaltimoreBaltimore, MD
- Keep Hope Alive: Survivors of Suicide Loss Peer Support GroupWestminster, MD
- S.O.S. LighthouseParkville, MD
- Survivors of SuicidePurcellville, VA
- Survivng After SuicideDumfries, VA
- Howard County Survivors of SuicideColumbia, MD
- Survivors of Suicide Support GroupFrederick, MD
Meeting times and contacts are on AFSP’s support group finder. More support after suicide loss →
For grieving children & teens · NACG member centers
- Camp Erin – DC | Camp Forget-Me-NotDistrict of Columbia, United States
- Wendt Center for Loss and HealingDistrict of Columbia, United States
Members of the National Alliance for Children’s Grief serving the Washington area. More support for children & teens →
By Type of Loss
Groups that fit your specific loss
A widow, a bereaved parent, and someone mourning a dog need different rooms. These pages list the national networks — most with Washington chapters or weekly online groups.
Loss of a Spouse or PartnerLoss of a ChildPregnancy & Infant LossPet LossSuicide LossMilitary & Veteran LossChildren & TeensLoss of a Parent
Want this list in your inbox?
One email with every network on this page, plus a short guide to choosing a group. No newsletter, no follow-ups — just the list, to read when you’re ready.
Questions
What families ask
Are grief support groups in Washington really free?
Mostly, yes. Hospice bereavement groups are free — Medicare requires the service — and nonprofit grief centers are typically free or donation-based. If a fee ever blocks you, say so; it is almost always waived.
How do I actually use this hospice list?
Call one nonprofit hospice near you and ask for the bereavement coordinator — that person’s job includes knowing every grief group in the area, including ones no website lists. You do not need to have used the hospice, and there is nothing to sign up for. One call, one question: “What grief groups are meeting near me right now?”
What if I need a group for my specific loss?
Start with our loss-type pages — spouse, child, pet, suicide loss and more. The national networks there run local chapters and scheduled online groups, which is often the fastest route to a room that fits.
While You’re Here
Free tools, if they’d help
Made for the same reason this directory exists. No account, no charge.
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