Loss and its associated grief are important elements of many adverse life events. The focus of this study is centred on a particular form of mourning: the affliction derived from the social identity loss caused by the disaffiliation with a religious sect. In postmodern society, this phenomenon needs to be better evaluated because it may be causing severe distress in an increasing number of people. The literature describes the stress caused by switching from one religious group to another, but less analysis has been done on the potential deleterious effects of the loss of social identity because of the breaking down of relationships with people within the original group. Following the grounded theory approach, 14 former Jehovah's Witnesses were interviewed with interpretative phenomenological analysis. Three main profiles emerged-born into the faith, converts to the faith, and inactive members-with different difficulties deriving from the loss of social identity and the relational network. The inquiry was focused on the effects of the identification versus individuation processes and also addressed the role of death anxiety. Results confirmed on the one hand a high level of distress that often caused death anxiety, alcoholism, panic attacks, and depression, as described in the literature. On the other hand, the importance of the individuation process emerged, following theologian Paul Tillich's concept of "courage of self-affirmation" and Bernard Lonergan's "self-appropriation," whose development occurs in three phases: de-identification and loss, grieving and crisis, and the work of grief and complete self-affirmation or self-appropriation. The usefulness of communicating these specific themes to a broad audience by enhancing community education through widespread spiritual counseling is also addressed.

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The censorship of death-related issues is widespread in contemporary Western culture because the boundary between death and life is substantially managed in medical areas. In the context of Italian educational initiatives, to remove this limitation, 215 high school students in Southern Italy were educated on death through conventional and informal lessons. The students answered a questionnaire with open questions to survey their emotional and reflective experiences. Their answers were qualitatively, thematically analysed to explore how the representation of death can follow a death education course, and if this experience can be managed without harmful effects. The students’ answers narrated how the course reduced their anxiety linked to these themes, on the one hand improving communication between peers by making it more authentic and empathic and, on the other, providing alternative perspectives on life. Indeed, the project offered an opportunity to discuss something strongly heartfelt but rarely faced, and the survey confirmed that the research objectives were fully achieved.

This article outlines the results of a three-month-long community letter-writing and letter-sharing project called “Viral Epistolary” (VE), which we completed online in Italy during the first wave of COVID-19 lockdowns. In it, we collected 340 digital letters from all over the country and connected thousands of people through epistolary exchanges. We used the genre of letters as a mediating, meaning-making, and (auto)biographical tool whereby people could share their experiences of domestic isolation and physical distancing, thus creating a community of support. Based on a well-documented understanding of meaning-making as a core human endeavor, especially in times of social disruption and personal crisis, this article frames sense-making as a transcendental and even spiritual process that yields broad principles for organizing life. Thus, the research adopts a psychosocial perspective on spirituality and applies thematic analysis to qualitatively analyze written narratives. The results reveal that many respondents underwent a three-part, not-necessarily-sequential process of collapsing, self-distancing, and transcending during lockdown, which allowed them to rearrange themselves according to the new total social fact of the pandemic. Through this process, respondents negotiated themes of semiotic crisis, striving for meaning, and beyond meaning (the essential). Finally, the article discusses the role of meaning as a transcendental component of psychosocial meaning-making coping processes and tries to highlight how shared writing experiences can stimulate personal and communal healing processes in the wake of social crises.

Epidemiological studies show that new cases of young oncology patients are increasing by 400,000 every year. Psychological literature has shown that receiving an oncological diagnosis can cause significant psychological stress and discomfort. However, the experiences of young patients and their caregivers as they confront this challenge are not yet fully understood. This paper adopts a qualitative methodological approach to explore how young patients with an oncological diagnosis and their parents make sense of the experiential challenges they face. Thus, the research realized 18 semi-structured interviews, 11 of which were with pediatric and adolescent oncology patients, and 7 of which were with 6 mothers and 1 father. The qualitative thematic analysis revealed that the oncological diagnosis triggers different emotions taking the scene in the attempt to cope with the threats of meaning that the diagnosis poses. However, such intense experience promotes transformative feelings in parents and young patients, leading to important personal growth. Lastly, this article discusses the need to improve palliative psychological care competences in pediatric oncology. By providing comprehensive psychological care to young oncology patients and their families, healthcare providers can mitigate the psychological stress and pain associated with the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.