Grief Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Multiple Group Comparisons

Abstract

Context. Grief researchers are concerned that the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic will precipitate increases in severe, persistent, and disabling grief, termed prolonged grief disorder or persistent complex bereavement disorder. We recently demonstrated that higher grief levels are experienced after COVID-19-related bereavement than natural bereavement. Death circumstances during the pandemic (e.g., reduced social support, limited opportunities for death rituals) may also hamper the grief process for non-COVID-19-related bereavement, yet no quantitative research has specifically addressed this issue. Objectives. To test if grief severity is higher during than before the lockdown after non-COVID-19-related bereavement. Methods. A cross-sectional survey including questions on sociodemographic and loss-related variables and a grief measure was conducted among a sample of 1600 bereaved adults (78% females), participating before (n ¼ 731) or during (n ¼ 869) the pandemic, including people who had experienced a loss before the pandemic (n ¼ 456) or during the pandemic (n ¼ 200) recently (five months ago or less). Results. No significant differences emerged between grief levels in people participating before or during the pandemic. However, being recently bereaved during the pandemic elicited more severe grief than before it (d ¼ 0.17; d ¼ 0.18). Effects remained significant after controlling analyses for relevant loss-related variables. Conclusion. Among all bereaved persons, grief severity was no different during the pandemic compared with before the pandemic. However, experiencing a recent loss during the pandemic elicited more severe acute grief reactions than before the pandemic, suggesting that dealing with loss may be more difficult during this ongoing health crisis. J Pain Symptom Manage 2020;-:-e- .

Pandemic Grief in Poland: Adaptation of a Measure and its relationship with Social Support and Resilience

“…Studies further suggest that people affected by traumatic experiences during the pandemic may overcome suffering in the longer run and become resilient (Bonanno, 2004;Bonanno et al, 2008). Lower perception of social support during the new coronavirus pandemic is a common phenomenon and stems mainly from restrictions concerning social distancing and isolation (Eisma & Tamminga, 2020). These findings highlight the challenges of providing social support during a time when social distancing measures are employed.…”

“…However, it is estimated that 2-10% of the population suffers from complications in the grief process (dysfunctional grief) that hinders their ability to return to normal psychosocial functioning (Glass, 2005). It seems that, in the case of the new coronavirus pandemic, this percentage may be higher, as people with COVID-19 most often die in hospitals, without the possibility of exchanging any meaningful words with their relatives before death or having to say "goodbye" over the phone/video (Eisma & Tamminga, 2020;Kokou-Kpolou et al, 2020). In addition, funerals and burials are postponed or organized remotely, often without the presence of the deceased person's family (Wallace et al, 2020).…”

Psychological Risk Factors of Functional Impairment After COVID-19 Deaths

“…Predictions that the unique circumstances of COVID-19 deaths will precipitate a worldwide increase in persistent and pervasive grief [3] appear correct. Very recent research shows that acute grief following a COVID-19 death is more severe than grief following death from other natural causes [4,5]. The full impact of this onslaught of grief will not be known for some time.…”

COVID-19 Communication Ecology: Visualizing Communication Resource Connections During a Public Health Emergency Using Network Analysis

“…As of February 2021, the respiratory disease caused by this novel virus (COVID-19) has resulted in multiple waves of outbreaks in the U.S. resulting in over 440,000 deaths and more than 25 million cases ( https://covid19.who.int/region/amro/country/us ). In addition to death and physical illness, COVID-19 has exerted a significant public mental health impact, resulting in increased individual stress, anxiety, depression, and grief reactions ( Eisma & Tamminga, 2020 ; First et al, 2020 ).…”