Did you know?
According to Mental Health America, individuals' reactions to the death of a loved one can elicit unique emotions linked to their relationship to the deceased. For example, MHA, a community-based nonprofit focused on promoting mental health, notes that a child's death could inspire different feelings than the loss of an elderly spouse. When parents lose a child, that death may arouse a sense of injustice that can overwhelm the child's parents as they contemplate lost potential, unfulfilled dreams and, in certain instances, the child's suffering. Elderly individuals who lose a spouse may be overcome by feelings of loneliness. Recognition of these different reactions is important because it can help individuals and their support networks more effectively cope with their grief.