Long-term grief and sharing courses among military widows who remarried.

Abstract

Objective:The long-term consequences of military spousal grief have not been adequately studied. Although the literature emphasizes the widow's connection with the deceased as part of the grief process, the importance of the sharing patterns of such grief has been overlooked. This study aimed to add to the understanding of remarried military widows' long-term grief, via 2 main processes: The first was to explore their grief processes, and the second was to reveal whether and how their grief processes were shared with others. Method: Semistructured interviews were conducted with 29 Israeli remarried military widows, more than 3 decades after their husbands' deaths. Data were analyzed by using thematic content analysis. Results: Findings revealed 2 continuums, 1 for each process. The first continuum was the grief process timeline, which covered a spectrum going from time-and emotionally limited processes to prolonged mourning processes. The second continuum was the sharing process, which covered a spectrum ranging from solitary grief to shared grief. Consequently, we suggest that widows can be viewed as occupying shifting points, over the years, on these intersecting continuums. Conclusions: The findings illuminate varied courses of coping and sharing of grief among older remarried military widows. Implications: An integration of loss, aging, and family relations theories for clinical work is suggested. Clinical Impact StatementThis article suggests a new conceptualization of widows' grief pathways as a matrix of two intersecting continuums: the grief-process timeline, which covers a spectrum ranging from (a) timeand emotionally limited mourning processes to (b) prolonged processes, and the sharing axis, ranging from (c) solitary grief to (d) shared grief. By using a graphic matrix tool, we suggest viewing grief as it manifests beyond the individual level. A contextual understanding of long-term grief, alongside the establishment of a new family, will highlight the meanings derived from this complex situation. These insights entail an integration of loss, aging, and family relations theories.

Bereaved mothers and widows’ grief and their unfolding relationships: Implications for social work

“…The findings also shed light on the newly created status quo, showing that it is not static or absolute, but rather an ongoing process where key lifecycle events serve as junctions of difficulty, but also as opportunities for reconciliation. This is consistent with recent studies emphasizing the long-term effects of bereavement and stressing that the experience of mourning changes over time (Bokek-Cohen, 2014; Malkinson & Bar-Tur, 2005; Nuttman-Shwartz et al, 2019), and that key lifecycle events often reactivate the past loss, even in families that functioned well until they reached a developmental milestone (Walsh & McGoldrick, 2013).…”

“…The loss of a partner has frequently been studied with respect to the aging woman. Recently, however, the experiences of younger widows have been receiving attention (Jones et al, 2019;Leichtentritt et al, 2013;Lowe & McClement, 2011;Nuttman-Shwartz et al, 2019), owing to the recognition of its unique challenges and risks (Bar-Nadav & Rubin, 2016;Haase & Johnston, 2012;Lowe & McClement, 2011), particularly severe depression that remains long after the actual loss (Sasson & Umberson, 2013;Young & Foy, 2013).…”

Widow and Bereaved Mother Relations After Loss of Husband or Son: A Double Perspective

“…At a young age, the loss of a spouse takes place at a stage when the widow and the deceased husband are in the process of building their shared life. It leaves the widow with a physical emptiness, along with grief over life plans, shared dreams, and hopes that have been curtailed by the husband's death (Bokek-Cohen, 2014;Nuttman-Shwartz et al, 2019). Adapting to the loss of a partner is a dynamic, multidimensional process that involves elements of preserving the image of the partner who is no is deceased, together with the need to adapt to life without him.…”

Living with spousal loss: Continuing bonds and boundaries in remarried widows’ marital relationships

“…It bears repeating that the grief narrative continually changes and that continuing bonds with the deceased loved one can be part of this F I G U R E 1 Couple dynamics in maintaining continuing bonds narrative. As such, it is important to continue exploring the dynamics of couples who remarry after the death of a spouse (whether in traumatic circumstances or not), obtaining more information about the dynamic changes while they occur (Nuttman-Shwartz et al, 2019).…”

“…Those who agreed to participate were interviewed by seven experienced social workers, who received additional training from the research team. Interviews lasted for an hour and a half on average (a more comprehensive description of the course of this study was published elsewhere: Nuttman‐Shwartz et al, 2019).…”