Grief: Aetiology, Symptoms and Management

Abstract

Grief is a process provoked as a response to different losses, such as death, loss of job, relationship breakdown, some unexpected life events and changes, etc. The experiences of loss and bereavement are very individual. Even though loss is expected, the person feels traumatized, especially if death is provoked by violence, natural disasters, or war. This pandemic, like other disasters (wars, tsunami, earthquakes, floods, etc.) has provoked intensive reactions of grief, reactions that could persist for years. The core symptoms of grief are described in the ICD-11 and DSM-5 manuals. The term “complicated grief” in the medical sense refers to a superimposed process that alters grief and modifies its course for the worse. Prolonged grief disorder (PGD) is characterized by normal grief symptoms, but these are symptoms that remain too intense for too long of a period. This article is a review of the manifestations and duration of grief in different occasions, and it is based on over 50 published papers, and discoveries in the Medline and Psych-Net databases. Commonly described reactions to grief are: shock, disbelief or denial, a high level of anxiety, distress, anger, sadness, insomnia, and a loss of appetite. As predictors for a high/slow decreasing trajectory of grief process are: female gender, reported symptoms of depression before the traumatic event, and higher scores on avoidance. However, grief is transient, even as we are is in the midst of its clutches. People should expect to fluctuate between moments of sadness and mourning, and moments of acceptance, or even happiness for being alive. Researchers suppose that when a crisis passes; most people will be able to bounce back and move on with their lives.

Mental health consequences of parental death and its prevalence in children: A systematic literature review

“…This similarity occurs because depressive symptoms experienced during a period of grief are an adaptive response to loss. However, when such symptomatology persists over time, it can lead to outcomes that are clinically significant in childhood, adolescence, and early adulthood [ 6 , 7 , 13 , 14 ].…”

A comprehensive overview of post-stroke depression treatment options

“…In such cases, it may be more appropriate to use a different term, such as ‘grief’. Grief is not only a natural emotion but also appears to be a necessary experience to help individuals adapt to causal events such as family bereavement, job loss, and relationship breakdown (Pop-Jordanova, 2021).…”

Approaching grief during the pandemic by COVID-19

“…The emotional or behavioral reaction manifests in the form of suffering and affliction when an affective bond is broken, the intensity and duration of the mourning does not depend on the nature of the loved one, object or lost situation, but on the value attributed to it. [34][35][36] Grief triggers different emotional or behavioral manifestations, for example: sleep disorders, repetitive ideas, feelings of presence, frequent forgetfulness, difficulty eating (not eating or overeating), lack of concentration, loss of interest, feeling loneliness, social isolation, hyperactivity or inactivity, increased substance use, guilt, crying, sadness, anger, disbelief, longing, or lack of energy. In general, people who experience grief present common expressions; although, it should be noted that life history, experience, learning, personality, and another series of factors, such as support networks, define the particular response that each individual will present when suffering from grief.…”