Complicated grief

• If a bereaved person gets ‘STUCK’ in acute grief for 6 months or longer, they are at risk of developing Complicated Grief
• Complicated grief is a prolonged and persistent form of intense grief, where the bereaved is unable to adapt to the loss.
• Affects one in ten of the grieving population  
• Grief reaction is beyond the expected social or cultural norms
• This syndrome is currently referred to as Prolonged Grief Disorder by the ICD II WHO, 2018, or Persistent Complex Bereavement Disorder in the DSM V. 
• Significantly impairs the person’s daily functioning  and is accompanied by intense emotional pain 
• Can look like depression or PTSD
• Risk factors & associated problems*
• Therapy can improve this condition

*ASSOCIATED PROBLEMS (MacCallum, 2019)

• Increases risk of suicide, 
• Risk of psychiatric disorders
• Health risks (by increasing drinking, smoking and not taking meds – passive suicidal ideation)
• Increased risk of cancer and cardiovascular problems (empirical evidence from a variety of sources  support this assertion such as  Bright, 1996, Robinson & Marwit, 2006; Vallora (2016) Hawkey, 2015; Alcaraz 2019; Neimeyer)