J. Worth Kilcrease

"Performers" after a respectable funeral

Inspirational Quotes

Take full account of the excellencies which you possess, and in gratitude remember how you would hanker after them, if you had them not.

Marcus Aurelius
Disenfranchised Grief PDF Print E-mail
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Unfortunately, there are situations where the grief that some people experience when they incur a loss is not or cannot be openly acknowledged, publicly mourned, or socially supported.  In other words, a person who has suffered a loss does not have the right to act as if he/she is bereaved even though he/she IS bereaved.   This inexpressible and unsupportable grief is called disenfranchised grief.  Ken Doka, a researcher who has studied this extensively, contends that society disenfranchises grief and mourners by not recognizing any of the following:

  • The relationship between the deceased and a survivor,
  • The importance of the loss, or
  • The need to be a griever.

My blog Grief: Disenfranchised Grief describes this and its implications more fully. 
 
 
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