Grief And Bereavement Process

Throughout the course of one’s life, he or she is likely to experience the grief and bereavement process due to the loss of a close friend, family member, or relative. The magnitude of the grief he or she may experience has been largely dependent on the level of attachment to the individual whom he or she lost (Arnett, 2015). Furthermore, marked differences have been found in how long and how severely people grieve (Bonanno, & Kaltman, 2001). Therefore, individuals may grieve and experience bereavement differently if they lost a child, as opposed to an uncle they only met several times. In either case, they would likely be effected, but obviously more so after having dealt with the loss of a child. Furthermore, as grieving and bereavement …show more content…
One such technique, found more so in men, is alcohol use (Creighton, Oliffe, Matthews, & Saewyc, 2015). Creighton, Oliffe, Matthews, and Saewyc (2015) stated that men may engage in drinking as a response to grief because of masculine ideals, and because they do not want to feel judged or become estranged from their peers for grieving in the wrong way. In addition, Peacock, (1998), demonstrated that men felt lesser levels of bereavement after having lost a parent, then women did. This notion was another indication that men were less likely to express their grief at the same level as women. Furthermore, the excessive use of alcohol can be empowering to men and allow them to get away with non-masculine actions. Peralta (2008) suggested that when men get drunk they are able to be more expressive and less manly without the stigma that would accompany these actions, had they been sober. Creighton et al. (2015), conducted a qualitative study as a means to better understand the different ways that young men use alcohol during the grieving …show more content…
Furthermore, participants in the older cohort who experienced alcohol-related issues in the years that followed their tragedy, also experienced other mental and physical issues. While the use of alcohol as a means to facilitate the grieving process may be controversial, it was an option that the men in this study used to cope with their losses nonetheless. Moreover, Creighton et al. (2015) demonstrated that this practice was common for individuals who experienced loss at a young age, specifically in the emerging adulthood stage of their lives. As emerging adults are more likely to stay in school longer, marry later, and start a family later, they are less likely to have a strong social support system. Therefore, they may not only be comfortable turning to alcohol in times of grief, but they may not know how else to handle the situation. Although this was a small sample, the use of alcohol to cope with loss may be a common trend for emerging adults, and requires further