When Parents Die: Learning to Live with the Loss of a Parent, 2nd Edition

This new edition of When Parents Die will speak to bereaved children of all ages in a very accessible style. Rebecca Abrams draws on both her personal and professional understanding of parental loss to provide the reader with a compassionate and insightful exploration of the experience of losing a parent. When Parents Die has already established itself as an indispensable aid both to the bereaved seeking some understanding of their loss and to the many professionals who work with them. This new edition takes into account new research and theories and considers in more depth: *the continuing importance of the dead parent in ones life *the critical role played by the surviving parent *the experiences of younger children *the impact of divorce and adoption. Retaining its clear, direct and sympathetic style, this text will continue to appeal to the bereaved, their friends and family, counsellors, social workers, doctors, nurses and teachers. "...considers in depth the continuing importance of the deceased parent in a child's life, the critical role played by the surviving parent, & the experiences of younger children...also considers the impact of divorce & adoption." Book Cover......Page 1 Half-Title......Page 2 Series-Title......Page 3 Title......Page 4 Copyright......Page 5 Dedication......Page 6 Contents......Page 7 Acknowledgements......Page 8 Foreword to the second edition......Page 9 Introducation......Page 11 1 My story......Page 16 2 First days, last rites......Page 27 3 Different deaths, different griefs......Page 43 4 Mourning time : The first year......Page 62 5 Mourning time : The second year and after......Page 81 6 Changes and losses : The private kind......Page 92 7 Changes and losses : The public kind......Page 118 8 Old grief in new guises......Page 127 9 Pathways to the future......Page 144 10 Last words......Page 155 Suggested reading......Page 157 Useful organizations......Page 161 Index......Page 164 First published in 1992, When Parents Die draws not only on Rebecca Abrams' own evolving understanding of parental loss but also on the experiences of young children, teenagers or adults who have suffered the loss of a parent. This new edition considers in more depth the continuing importance of the deceased parent in one's life, the critical role played by the surviving parent, and the experiences of younger children, as well as the impact of other types of loss like divorce and adoption. Drawing on new research undertaken on bereavement, especially in the area of "grief work, " When Parents Die is a direct and sympathetic book which will speak to all readers concerned with coping with parental loss. This new edition covers the entire course of grieving, from the immediate aftermath of a parent's death through to the point of recovery, paying particular attention to the many circumstances that can prolong and complicate mourning