sage of time. Anticipatory grief can become more intense as the Anticipatorymembers complete the process of anticipatory grief, and detach-is dying experiences feelings of loneliness and isolation as the psy-In the case of a dying person, diffimourning process following the loss, there may be some problems. Another example of diffiexpected loss becomes imminent.tion of the grief response is one that can occur on the return of conventional grief tends to diminish in intensity with the pas-loss actually occurs. One dissimilar aspect relates to the fact that emotions associated with the normal grief response before the Anticipatory Griefpersons long absent and presumed dead (e.g., soldiers missing in chological pain of imminent death is faced without family support. ment from the dying person occurs prematurely. The person who action or prisoners of war). In this instance, resumption of the pre-again, and adapt to new roles. There is also a sense in which mourn-pre-grief state (p. 77). long-term process, and the culmination [very likely] will not be to a Worden (2009) stated:ing is never fiThere is a sense in which mourning can be fiAlthough anticipatory grief is thought to facilitate the actual regain an interest in life, feel more hopeful, experience gratifi^ grieving nished. [People must understand] that mourning is a culty associated with premature comple- is the experiencing of the feelings and culties can arise when the family Loss and Bereavement nished, when people ● cation^397
2 2506_Ch24_390-405.indd 0397 506 Ch 24 390 - 405 .indd accompany the grief response.Maladaptive Responses to LossWhen, then, is the grieving response considered to be mal-adaptive? Three types of pathological grief reactions have been described. These include delayed or inhibited grief, an exaggerated or distorted grief response, and chronic or pro-longed grief.Delayed or Inhibited Grief Delayed or inhibited grief refers to the absence of evidence of grief when it ordinarily would be expected. Many times, cultural infl 0 cause the delayed response.vious relationship may be diffithe person is simply not dealing with the reality of the loss. viduals to ease the burden of loss when it actually occurs. It may prove to be less functional for others who, because of interper-sonal, psychological, or sociocultural variables, are unable in advance of the actual loss to express the intense feelings that 397 uences, such as the expectation to keep a “stiff upper lip,” Delayed or inhibited grief is potentially pathological because Anticipatory grieving may serve as a defense for some indi- cult for the bereaved person. 10/1/10 9:38:47 AM 10 / 1 / 10 9 : 38 : 47 AM
