Mediating Grief: Postmortem Ritualization After Child Death

Cacciatore, Joanne; Flint, Melissa

doi:10.1080/15325024.2011.595299

Cited by 52 publications

(52 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…13 Mothers feel appreciative when providers engage in meaningful acts of ritualization with them, often expressing gratitude for microrituals such as taking photographs, holding the baby, and collecting mementos. 13,15 However, the literature is not devoid of controversy: Whereas some studies demonstrate that rituals, such as holding the stillborn baby, improve long-term outcomes for women, other studies suggest that doing so may increase risk of negative psychiatric sequelae. 13,16,17 Upon release from the hospital, mothers return home to empty nurseries, dressers filled with newborn clothes and diapers, breasts full with milk for their baby who died, and the anticipation of family and friends met with sorrow and tragedy.…”

Section: 11e14mentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychological effects of stillbirth

Cacciatore

2013

Seminars in Fetal and Neonatal Medicine

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128

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This article appeared in a journal published by Elsevier. The attached copy is furnished to the author for internal non-commercial research and education use, including for instruction at the authors institution and sharing with colleagues.Other uses, including reproduction and distribution, or selling or licensing copies, or posting to personal, institutional or third party websites are prohibited. Despite the high prevalence globally, the death of a baby to stillbirth is an often misunderstood and disenfranchised loss. Mothers, fathers, and families struggle to cope with the immediate and long-lasting effects of a baby's death which can last for years and sometimes decades. In addition, providers can be adversely affected by stillbirth, particularly when met with experiential avoidance and a sense of guilt and failure. There is little evidence on intervention efficacy in acute grief following perinatal death; however, there is a growing body of scientific literature on the efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions in treating anxiety, depression, and other biopsychosocial maladies as well as improving patient satisfaction with psychosocial care. This paper explores one such intervention model, ATTEND (attunement, trust, therapeutic touch, egalitarianism, nuance, and death education), as a means to improve psychosocial care during both acute and chronic states of bereavement. Whereas the death of a baby to stillbirth is the ultimate paradox for providers and patients e the convergence of life and death and the fundamental contradiction it represents e with proper care and compassion, families stand a better chance in the face of such indescribable loss and they need not suffer alone.Published by Elsevier Ltd.

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Section: 11e14mentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychological effects of stillbirth

Cacciatore

2013

Seminars in Fetal and Neonatal Medicine

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140

128

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“…Postmortem photography creates ''emotional artifacts'' (Layne, 2003, p. 125) that are imbued with symbolic meaning and often used ritualistically by bereaved individuals (Castle & Phillips, 2003). Directly participating in postmortem photography gives parents a reason to see and hold their dead or dying child, which may serve as a therapeutic farewell-ritual behavior (Cacciatore & Flint, 2012b;Harvey et al, 2008).…”

Section: Identity Narrative and Ritualmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Ritual offers meaning, validates loss, and mediates transition in identity during the grief process (Castle & Phillips, 2003;Romanoff & Terenzio, 1998). Yet, few religious or secular rituals exist to honor children who have died at or near the time of birth (Cacciatore & Flint, 2012b;Frøen et al, 2011;Lovell, 1997). Postmortem photography creates ''emotional artifacts'' (Layne, 2003, p. 125) that are imbued with symbolic meaning and often used ritualistically by bereaved individuals (Castle & Phillips, 2003).…”

Section: Identity Narrative and Ritualmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Parental Grief and Memento Mori Photography: Narrative, Meaning, Culture, and Context

Blood

Cacciatore

2013

Death Studies

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“…To ameliorate this fear, Worden (2009) (Decinque et al, 2006); sharing stories (Cacciatore & Flint, 2012) utilizing inner senses such as sound, sight, rituals and images (Arnold & Gemma, 2008); and the creation of legacies to the deceased child (Woodgate, 2006).…”

Section: Continuation or Closure?mentioning

confidence: 99%

The stories we haven't told: the lived experience of music used in therapy for bereaved parents

Flynn¹

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Music therapy within the parameters of the therapeutic space has been widely researched, explored, discussed and analysed within the literature. With a tool such as music however, which exists in our everyday life, it is critical for the profession to start to focus beyond the therapy room. This qualitative research project therefore aimed to explore the ways in which music therapy, specifically song parody technique, shapes bereaved parents engagement with music in their lives. In order to address this overarching aim, three questions were explored:(1) What are bereaved parents lived experiences of music therapy?(2) How do bereaved parents lived experiences of music therapy affect their ongoing relationship with music? (3) In what ways does the song parody technique shape a bereaved parents meaning of the song?Through a constructivist lens, the methodology of narrative inquiry was employed as it allowed the storied lives of the bereaved parents as well as the music to be told in a way that acknowledged the existence of multiple realities, accounted for the individual nature of grief and recognised the dual import of researcher and participant.Five past clients of the researcher consented to participate in an in-depth interview either one or two years post music therapy during which, music that was used in the therapy session was played to participants.Findings from the narratives were revealing and suggest that music used in therapy sessions can often continue to play a role in client's lives beyond the therapy room.For all participants new and/or additional meanings were created and associated to the music used for the song parody technique. Furthermore, findings suggest that the way a client engages in the process of songwriting can impact on their longer-term meanings and associations to the music. These meanings continue to exist for a significant period of time post music therapy, irrespective of level of engagement within the therapy session. Of critical importance is the fact that although all participants acquired new meaning to music used in therapy, for some participants, iii this created a more painful and triggered association to the music. It is considerations such as this, which highlight the importance of this study and future studies that consider the longer-term implications of our therapeutic tool.iv

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Mediating Grief: Postmortem Ritualization After Child Death

Cited by 52 publications

References 25 publications

Psychological effects of stillbirth

Psychological effects of stillbirth

Parental Grief and Memento Mori Photography: Narrative, Meaning, Culture, and Context

The stories we haven't told: the lived experience of music used in therapy for bereaved parents

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