9781422270196

TASKS OF MOURNING

Psychologist J. William Worden outlines what he calls the Tasks of Mourning to help people understand the processes they go through as they actively process their grief. They are: • To accept the reality of the loss • To experience the pain of grief • To adjust to an environment in which the deceased is missing • To emotionally relocate the deceased and move on with life

sadness, “depression, anxiety, increased feelings of suicidality, [and] lower self-esteem.” 6 Initially, people experience a sense of disbelief or denial that their loved one has died. Experts call this part of the process denial, 7 accepting the reality of the loss or wishing for the predictability of events. 8 Immediately after a loss, the teenage brain may be unable to process the information that someone or something was lost. For example, expecting a deceased loved one to call or walk into the home is not unusual. You may even find yourself driving down the street where a house burned down. These are routines that the human brain takes a while to process and change. After the initial shock of loss has passed, people must learn to work through their grief and other related emotions like anger, anxiety, and depression. As you enter this process of feeling your emotions, acknowledging them, and working through them,

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Chapter 1: What is Grief?