Understanding Perinatal Loss Through Grief Theories Application

This essay explores the application of various grief theories to the specific context of perinatal loss, a deeply devastating experience for bereaved parents. It examines how theories such as Bowlby's attachment theory, Worden's tasks of mourning, Stroebe and Schut's dual process model, and Klass, Silverman, and Nickman's continuing bonds theory can be applied to understand and support individuals coping with this type of loss. The essay highlights the importance of acknowledging the loss, staying active, focusing on daily activities, and maintaining bonds with other family members as potential coping mechanisms for grieving parents. Desklib offers a wealth of similar resources for students.

Running head: GRIEF THEORIES AND ITS APPLICATION TO PERINATAL LOSS
GRIEF THEORIES AND ITS APPLICATION TO PERINATAL LOSS
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author’s Name:

1GRIEF THEORIES AND ITS APPLICATION TO PERINATAL LOSS
Any kind of personal loss is devastating to any individual but perinatal loss feels like life
shattering occurrence. This is a very devastating and stressful event and bereaved parents suffer
from distressful perinatal grief. Theories of grief can be applied to this situation to make it bearable
for the parents. Application of these theories is mentioned below:
1. Stages and phases: This theory on attachment was proposed by John Bowlby. This theory
suggests the idea that venting or acknowledging guilt or anger may bring some relief (White 2018).
Therefore, encouraging bereaved parents to talk about their loss and accepting the fact might be
helpful.
2. Tasks for the bereaved: This theory was proposed by William J Worden in Nineteen eighties.
According to this theory, people have work through their grief for complete adjustment (Worden
2018). Hence, as per as this theory, the grieving parents must be kept busy to overcome their
perinatal loss.
3. Dual process model: This model is relatively new in comparison with the other two fore
mentioned theory. This theory was developed and proposed by Stroebe and Schut in 1995 and 1996.
This method deals with two dynamic process such as loss and restoration (Stroebe and Schut 2016).
According to this theory, the bereaved parents can only cope with this overwhelming situation if
they focus on the other daily activities.
4. Continuing bonds: This theory was developed by Klass, Silverman and Nickman. According to
this theory, the bereave parents does not have to forget their loss but they can move forward with
life by bonding with other family members (Klass, Silverman and Nickman 2014).

2GRIEF THEORIES AND ITS APPLICATION TO PERINATAL LOSS
References
Klass, D., Silverman, P.R. and Nickman, S., 2014. Continuing bonds: New understandings of grief.
Taylor & Francis.
Stroebe, M. and Schut, H., 2016. Overload: A missing link in the dual process model?. OMEGA-
Journal of Death and Dying, 74(1), pp.96-109.
White, K., 2018. Attachment theory and The John Bowlby Memorial Lecture 2013: a short history.
In Addictions From an Attachment Perspective (pp. 19-28). Routledge.
Worden, J.W., 2018. Grief counseling and grief therapy: A handbook for the mental health
practitioner. Springer Publishing Company.