Chapter 3: How has this loss affected my family?


Section Summary

  • Your relationship with the person who has died will almost always shape your grieving. Reflecting on your relationship can help you understand and move through your grief.
  • After the death of someone important, you can feel many losses in your life, such as loss of identity, intimacy, companionship, and security.
  • When one person in the family dies, families go through a lot of stress and change. This depends on how your family communicates about the loss, how family members grieve, and any new skills that need to be learned or roles filled now that the person has died. Sometimes your family’s reactions will surprise and worry you.