6.2 Talking with families and children about the death of a parent Flashcards
After the death of a parent most children do not experience serious problems. Some children demonstrate non-specific disturbances in emotions/behaviour. List three such disturbances that may be seen
increased anxiety with focus on concerns about future loss
safety of other family members
fears around separation
mild depression
List four general factors which influence the experience of bereavement in a child
child factors - prior experiences of loss, their preferred coping style
Family and social relationship factors (including their prior and ongoing relationship with the person who has died)
Child’s environment and culture
The circumstances of the death (including whether the child perceives this as traumatic)
List three family and social relationship factors that are protective in terms of childhood bereavement
higher levels of caregiver warmth
coping styles
lower levels of caregiver mental health problems
discipline
communication
Provide a brief overview of psychoanalytic theory of mourning as espoused by Freud and built on my Pollack
an individual displays attachment or love to significant others who are involved in satisfying their needs. When a loved one is lost they remain connected through libinidinal energy and detaching or severing this energy is necessary. Accomplished by reviewing memories of the deceased, while painful detachment is necessary so that the ego can invest in new relationships.
Pollack added stages to this - shock and then period of mourning, followed by separation reaction in which the presentation of the love object is restructured from present reality to a memory
According to attachment theory, grief occurs for what reason? What type of role does the bereaved take in the process of grieving in stage models of grief
grief is an instinctive universal response to separation
In the stage model of grief the bereaved takes a passive role and moves through linear stages of grief in order to reach the goal or stage of resolution
What do task models of grief suggest about the process of grief? What type of role does the bereaved take in the process of grieving in task models of grief
Task models see bereavement as a series of tasks to work through rather than a series of stage through which an individual has to pass
Bereaved plays an active role
Main tasks - severing ties with deceased, adjusting to one’s new environment without loved one, crating new bonds with others
What was the major contribution of Klass’s continuing bonds model in contemporary understanding of grief
Suggest the purpose of grieving is not to break bonds with deceased but instead maintain a continuing bond with the deceased compatible with new and continuing relationships
What are two orientations that people move between in the dual process model of grief? List four factors that influence the degree to which these orientations is experienced for individuals
Recognizes that both expressing and controlling feelings are important and introduces a new concept: that of oscillation between coping behaviours
loss orientation - focussing on loss of person who has died
restoration orientation - avoiding that focus
four factors: circumstance of death, personality, gender, cultural background
What is the single most important element in grief resolution between an adult and child? What does this prevent? What types of speech must be avoided?
Providing clear, honest age appropriate information and allowing children to discuss this and ask questions
prevents misunderstandings which may lead to frightening fantasies and fears
euphanisms and abstractions are not advisable
A child’s ability to understand concepts of death is based on what two major principles?
cognitive development
experience of death of dying
At what level of cognitive development do children start to understand the abstract concept of death? What age does this take place?
When they have operational thinking
7-11 years old
A parent tells their child about the death of the other parent. Every few weeks the child asks about the deceased parent and where they are. Why does the child keep asking
They do not have the capacity to understand abstraction such as finality and irreversibility
Does the well or ill parent generally dictate how much information is shared with children about illness? An adult in your care has started to miss her child’s soccer games because of illness. The parent says they will explain why this happened after the death has happened. What do you tell the parent?
the ill parent dictates how much
children need information not only at the time of physical death but also when a parent that was known to them in terms of ‘mothering/fathering’ is lost to them due to illness. Without information children feel confused/bewildered and did not understand what was happened. Regular medical updates about the parent’s condition were helpful
