Death of a Parent

Grieving After the Death of a Parent

Support to individuals enduring the loss of a parent must be couched in an intensely empathic understanding of developmental and attachment issues. Whether the loss is sudden or anticipated, grieving the death of a parent is often complex and traumatic on multiple levels. There may be unfinished business, ambivalent feelings, regrets, and developmental challenges in learning to live without a parent. The specific nature of the loss must be grounded in recollecting the interpersonal meanings built into the relationship as well as facing the challenges to adjust to the new world without a parent.

Personal Grief Rituals by Paul M. Martin

Oct 24, 2022 | Articles, Communal Grief, Death of a Parent, Death of a Partner, Death of a Sibling, Grief in the Workplace, Grieving Adults, Grieving After a Miscarriage or Still Birth, Grieving and the Holidays, Grieving Children, Helpful Books, Notes from the Center, Resources, Self Care, Suicide and Overdose, When Someone Dies by Suicide

Personal Grief Rituals presents a new model for how bereaved individuals can create unique expressions of mourning that are tailored to their psychological needs and grounded in memories and emotions specific to the relationship they lost. This book examines cultures...

On the Washington Post’s “How to Grieve During a Pandemic”

Dec 27, 2021 | Articles, Communal Grief, Death of a Parent, Death of a Partner, Death of a Sibling, Grieving Adults, Grieving Children, Resources, Self Care

To witness is to protect and preserve experience from being denied out of existence. As mourners we go through phases of protest, not the least of which is the fight to not have our grief taken away from us. Back in September, 2020 when the total number estimated...

Metaphors for Mourners

Nov 2, 2018 | Articles, Death of a Parent, Death of a Partner, Death of a Sibling, Grieving Adults, Grieving After a Miscarriage or Still Birth, Grieving Children, Resources, When Someone Dies by Suicide

Grief counseling has a specific character in that it is essentially focused on assisting the griever in recognizing, reacting to, and integrating loss(es). However, while it is distinct in its nature and course, grief counseling often intersects with traditional...

What We Lose When A Parent Dies

Mar 8, 2018 | Death of a Parent

To understand the significance of the loss of a parent, it's helpful to examine the many losses associated with this death. What we lose when a parent dies can be complex and traumatic on multiple levels. The Parent/Child Relationship There is no one who can replace a...