Psychology 210: Chapter 10

Differentiate among grief, bereavement, and mourning.

Grief is the normal process of reacting to a loss. Bereavement is the period after a loss during which grief and mourning occur. Mourning is the process by which people adapt to a loss. When it comes to death there are some stages we all have to go through mentally in order to clear our minds and not overwhelm ourselves with grief and regret. Taking bereavement from school and work due to a death is a time for you and your family (even friends) to grieve and mourn the loss properly.

There are people who like to overwork themselves just so they can distract themselves from grief. Some people grieve and mourn differently and that is fine as long as you properly process the death. Some deaths can even trigger your brain into negative acts such as when a loved one dies due to a complicated surgery or overdose, the loved one(s) will blame the Physician behind their death because they want someone else to blame instead of things just happening. They can then snap and proceed to a mass shooting of a hospital (which is why hospitals are so heavily guarded due to the mental state of patients’ loved ones not accepting their death).