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Child Bereavement

There is substantial research regarding to grief in adults, but there is less focus in literature about grief within children . Children will experience instances in their life that could involve losing a parent, sibling, or friend through suicide, unintentional injury, homicide, or natural causes. Unlike adults, children may experience and express their grief and bereavement through behaviors, and are less likely to outwardly express their emotions . The children who experience bereavement and grief can receive treatment involving group intervention , play therapy , and cognitive behavioral therapy . Different forms of treatment for children experiencing bereavement and or grief can help to reduce symptoms of anxiety, depression, social adjustment, and posttraumatic stress . In western countries, 5% of children will experience the loss of a parent, and in the United States 1 out 20 will experience such a loss before they are the age of 18, . Across the world the loss of a parent is seen as a significant life event for a child The precise definition and duration of the bereavement process has been a source of controversy over the decades . According to the DSM-V, Persistent Complex Bereavement Disorder, requires that the child loss someone that they had a close relationship with; and during a 6 month period the child must experience on more days than not one of the following symptoms, a yearning for the deceased individual, sorrow or emotional pain for the dead, preoccupation with the death, or preoccupation surrounding the circumstances around the death. Additionally, six more symptoms must be experienced on more days than not that are related to reactive distress to death or social/identity disruption .

Development Considerations

Children can be vulnerable to life events following loss . The vulnerability is due to developmental immaturity and the lack of developed coping abilities . .It is common to assume children will grieve in a similar fashion to adults, but their symptoms and duration of grief following loss appears differently . Additionally, children’s emotions may be expressed differently than adults; adults may express their grief through sadness, but children may misbehave or have outbursts . Research emphasizes the importance of being cognizant of and not to expect children to display their emotions outwardly like adults, but rather that their behaviors could indicate their internal distress .

Types of Treatment

A large portion of children may experience loss and bereavement at some point during their childhood . After these losses occur, there are a variety of types of treatment techniques that can be implemented, including Play Therapy, Group Therapy, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy . Play therapy for loss during childhood uses activities like drawing or games that aid in having the children talk about their feelings . Lastly, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for loss during childhood includes using cognitive techniques to assist the child in changing their behavior and using more effective coping techniques .

Impact of Treatment

The different forms of treatment aiming to assist children in coping with loss and bereavement also help to reduce their symptoms of anxiety, depression, adjustment issues, and posttraumatic stress . By using empirically driven forms of therapy for children who have experienced loss, children can reduce their symptoms and will be less likely to drop out of treatment by focusing on the feelings and reaction they have to the death or suicide of someone close .