Grief and Bereavement in People With Intellectual Disabilities

Theories of Grief

Much of the work currently exploring grief and bereavement in the general population has implications for PWID, particularly those in the mild-to-moderate range of disability. There has been wide acceptance that the typical grief reaction following a significant bereavement involves a progression through the following psychological stages: shock (disbelief), yearning (separation distress), anger or protest, depression, and finally acceptance,^[5] all occurring progressively, within a 12-month time period, after loss.

However, recent research has questioned the validity of the above 'stage theory' of normal grief. In a longitudinal cohort study of 233 bereaved individuals living in the north east of the United States, yearning was found to be the most common distressing feeling throughout the 24-month time period of the study following the bereavement. Disbelief, anger, and depression occurred less frequently, and all grief indicators peaked within a 6-month time period after loss and in the exact sequence as suggested by the stage theory of grief.^[6] There is the suggestion that grief represents a single psychological construct, made up of disbelief, yearning, anger and depression, with acceptance gradually developing throughout the period of time following the bereavement.^[7••]

Curr Opin Psychiatry. 2009;22(5):442-446. © 2009  Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Cite this: Grief and Bereavement in People With Intellectual Disabilities - Medscape - Sep 01, 2009.