|
Grief and Mourning Defined
Many people use the words, grief and mourning interchangeably, when actually they have distinct meanings.
Grief
involves the many reactions we have to a loss. This may include sleep and appetite disturbances, difficulty concentrating, problems with decision-making, intense and varied emotions, social withdrawal, loss of interest in things that were once enjoyed, etc. As you can see from this short list, grief reactions greatly impact a person’s day-to day functioning.
Mourning
is the way we adjust to the loss over time. It involves changing the way you see yourself, your life, and the world. Mourning involves developing a new relationship to the person who died, a relationship of memory. Developing a new identity, and bringing the past together with the present are also tasks of mourning, along with reconstructing a new meaning in your life.
Grief involves the many reactions one has to a loss.
Mourning involves changing to fit new circumstances. Except for occasional and temporary upsurges, grief eventually comes to an end and normal functioning returns. (This normal functioning may be completely different from the way you used to function, but it still can be seen as normal – a new normal.) Mourning can be life-long. For example, mourning may occur when a woman gets married and doesn’t have her father to walk her down the aisle. Even if he died years earlier, and she has moved forward in her life with much happiness, she may re-experience his absence in a new way as her wedding approaches, as she faces his death all over again from this new perspective. The same is true for a widower who has made a good adjustment to living alone, but then develops a chronic illness. He may confront his loss all over again, as he deals with his illness alone. If he always believed that his wife would survive him, he must now readjust to the reality that she is dead and cannot help care for him. At times such as these when we must readjust to the loss of someone loved, it is not unusual to experience upsurges of grief all over again.
|
|
|
The Hospice of Volusia/Flagler has been licensed since 1979. Halifax Hospice, Inc., d/b/a Hospice of Volusia/Flagler is exempt from federal income tax under Section 501(c)(3) I.R.C.
Contributions are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. Our tax ID number is 59-2661284. “A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER
SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL-FREE WITHIN THE STATE 800-435-7352 OR CALLING OUTSIDE THE STATE 850-488-2221. REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL, OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE.
|
|
