A comprehensive exploration of grief by leading researchers and mental health care professionals; grief as an entirely natural response to loss and the consequences when the grief or loss is not openly acknowledged, socially sanctioned, or publicly shared.

This book focuses on the kind of grief that is not openly acknowledged, socially validated, or publicly mourned. It addresses the unique psychological, biological, and sociological issues involved in disenfranchised grief. The contributing authors explore the concept of disenfranchised grief, help define and explain this type of grief, and offer clinical interventions to help grievers express their hidden sorrow.

The Disenfranchised: Stories of Life and Grief When an Ex-Spouse Dies offers an unprecedented anthology of never-before-published, first-person life histories by ex-spouses whose grief has endured as disenfranchised: socially unacknowledged, untold, and unrecognised. Each story of disenfranchised grief is fiercely honest and courageously made public. This anthology has no parallels in current texts, academic literature or mainstream publications. Contributors present personal histories, revealing that the dimensions of disenfranchised grief are as individual as the writers who have endured this neglected aspect of grief and bereavement. In many narratives, the healing power of their creative processes through art and poetry is further revealed. The anthology is compiled and edited by Peggy Sapphire, MS (Guidance and Counseling), a writer living in Vermont. Over the span of five years, through phone conversations and written communications, Ms. Sapphire established trusting relationships with the contributors, who, though choosing to submit their work, often struggled with reluctance, even dread, at revisiting previously private events in their lives and finally committing their stories to paper, and ultimately to publication. Each narrative is accompanied by a clinical commentary, written by Shirley Scott, MS, certified Thanatologist, which provides readers, whether academic, practitioner, student, or lay, with reflections on the issues and patterns of disenfranchised grief, as reflected by each narrative. Included in each commentary are bibliographic references for further and advanced study. The contributors represent an extraordinary range of professional achievements and academic credentials--well-published writers, poets, working artists, educators, academics, mental health practitioners, and health professionals.

Without proper support, navigating the icy waters of grief may feel impossible. The grieving person may feel spiritually bankrupt and often the loss is so painful that the bereaved may lose faith in what they once held dear. Mindfulness meditation can restore hope by offering a compassionate safe haven for healing and self-reflection. While nobody can predict the path of someone else's grief, this book will guide the reader forward through the grieving process with simple mindfulness-based exercises to restore mind, body and spirit. These easy-to-follow meditations will help the reader to cope with the pain of loss, and embark on a healing journey. Each chapter focuses on a different aspect of grief, and the guided meditations will calm the mind and increase clarity and focus. Mindfulness and Grief will help readers to begin the process of reconstructing the shattered self that is left in the wake of any major loss.

Non-Death Loss and Grief offers an inclusive perspective on loss and grief, exploring recent research, clinical applications, and current thinking on non-death losses and the unique features of the grieving process that accompany them. The book places an overarching focus on the losses that we encounter in everyday life, and the role of these loss experiences in shaping us as we continue living. A main emphasis is the importance of having words to accurately express these ‘living losses’, such as loss of communication with a loved one due to disease or trauma, which are often not acknowledged for the depth of their impact. Chapters showcase a wide range of contributions from international leaders in the field and explore individual perspectives on loss as well as experiences that are more interpersonal and sociopolitical in nature. Illustrated by case studies and clinical examples throughout, this is a highly relevant text for clinicians looking to enhance their support of those living with ongoing loss and grief.

"In this state-of-the-art volume, leading international scholars and clinicians provide a comprehensive and cross-disciplinary overview of how rigorous research on bereavement translates into practice. They identify new developments and controversies in the field, relating new theories to concepts from attachment theory and emotion theory. The effects of societal change and of national and international events on personal and public mourning are examined along with other areas of interest to practitioners, such as grief and disaster, posttraumatic growth, and cultural competence in helping diverse clients cope with grief and bereavement. New analyses use longitudinal data sets to trace patterns of adjustment, trajectories of grieving over time, and the use of coping resources. The contributors also explore emerging research on the consequences of losing a loved one, "disenfranchised" grieving, continuing bonds, and other critical areas. Researchers and practitioners will find much to enrich and deepen their work in this thought-provoking volume"--Cover. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).

In this “volume of rare sensitivity, penetrating understanding, and profound insights” (Rabbi Earl A. Grollman, author of Living When a Loved One Has Died), Dr. Kenneth Doka explores a new, compassionate way to grieve, explaining that grief is not an illness to get over but an individual and ongoing journey. There is no “one-size-fits-all” way to cope with loss. The vital bonds that we form with those we love in life continue long after death—in very different ways. Grief Is a Journey is the first book to overturn prevailing, often judgmental, ideas about grief and replace them with a hopeful, inclusive, personalized, and research-backed approach. New science and studies behind Dr. Doka’s teaching upend the dominant but incorrect view that grief proceeds by stages. Dr. Doka helps us realize that our experiences following a death are far more individual and much less predictable than the conventional “five stages” model would have us believe. Common patterns of experiencing and expressing grief still prevail, yet many other life changes accompany a primary loss. For example, the deaths of parents, even for adults, modify family patterns, change relationships, and alter old family rituals. Unique to this book, Dr. Doka also explains how to cope with disenfranchised grief—the types of loss that are not so readily recognized or supported by society. These include the death of ex-spouses, as well as non-fatal losses such as divorce, the end of a friendship, job loss, or infertility. In addition, Dr. Doka considers losses that might be stigmatized, including death by suicide or from disease or self-destructive behaviors such as smoking or alcoholism. And finally, Dr. Doka reminds us that, however painful, grief provides opportunities for growth.