Only the Living Can Witness the Passing of Death: Mourning in Times of Pandemic

This report presents the special characteristics of the psychotherapy process with patients who are grieving the loss of a loved one. Because of the special background circumstances in which these losses have occurred-the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the 3 months lockdown because of it-I have called...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Humanistic psychologist 2020-12, Vol.48 (4), p.357-362
Main Author: Vázquez Bandín, Carmen
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Coronavirus
COVID-19
Deaths
Gestalt Therapy
Grief
Human
Intervention
Loneliness
Pandemics
Psychotherapeutic Processes
Psychotherapy
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Summary:This report presents the special characteristics of the psychotherapy process with patients who are grieving the loss of a loved one. Because of the special background circumstances in which these losses have occurred-the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the 3 months lockdown because of it-I have called these griefs suspended. In the article I offer the social background circumstances, the personal circumstances of the loss, and the therapeutic intervention with the special characteristics for both the therapist and the therapeutic setting. Finally, I offer some specific tools for working with this type of grief. All these considerations are made from the approach of Gestalt therapy as well as with the working model proposed by Dr. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. This is coupled with my experience of more than 20 years in psychotherapeutic work with people who are living a grieving process.
ISSN:0887-3267
1547-3333
DOI:10.1037/hum0000225