Maternal Resilience and Chronic Depression in Mourning for a Child: A Preliminary Case-Based Analysis

Abstract

This article reports a retrospective comparative study of 10 mothers whose loss of a child caused chronic major depression despite medication followed by psychotherapy. The mothers were compared to 10 other mothers who participated in a longitudinal study conducted over the time period between the occurrence of the tragedy and complete recovery. The mothers were compared on the basis of life-event data, a semidirective interview, and a projective inquiry using the Rorschach Test. Some important differences were found between the two groups of mothers, from the standpoint of the support offered by their therapist, the elaboration of guilt feelings following the loss, their ability to mentally represent the trauma as assessed by the Rorschach Test, and their capacity to disinvest the lost object. Two factors that were not considered at the beginning of the research seem to fulfill a crucial function from the preventive standpoint: (1) the possibility of offering mourning mothers psychological support in addition to medication immediately after the loss, and (2) the possibility for the mother of freeing herself from a strong oedipal link with the deceased child.

A Systematic Review of the Peer-Reviewed Literature on Self-Blame, Guilt, and Shame

“…Table 1 summarizes the qualitative studies. In Miles and Demi’s (1983) study, participants were recruited from a seminar titled “coping with guilt,” while the participants in De Tychey and Dollander’s (2007) study were recruited through the researchers’ psychotherapy practice. Neither of the studies included a discussion about how their recruitment methods may have impacted on their data collection or interpretation.…”

“…The qualitative approach is best suited for exploring subjective meanings and providing a “thick description” of actions, interactions, and social processes in local contexts (Popay, Rogers, & Williams, 1998). Miles and Demi (1983) and De Tychey and Dollander (2007) did not provide a thick description of their results, nor did they discuss context or the researcher–participant relationship. These omissions reduce the transferability of their findings (Popay et al., 1998, p. 347).…”

Of the Soul and Suffering: Mindfulness-Based Interventions and Bereavement

“…For example, one study found that grieving mothers diagnosed with MDD years after the death of a child had several differentiating factors when compared to resilient mothers (de Tychey and Dollander 2007). In the case of mothers diagnosed with MDD, ''(h)alf of them felt there was too great an emotional distance between themselves and their therapist'' (p. 23).…”