Chronic GriefChronic grief is grieving that lasts for a prolonged or extended period of time. There does not seem to be any significant reduction in emotional distress or which never seems to end or decrease in severity across time. A person who is experiencing this continues to feel extreme distress with the loss feeling as fresh as when it first happened.
Some experts contend that those people who were overly dependent on the deceased are more likely to suffer from this disorder. Keeping their grief close is a way of hanging on to their beloved deceased.
We must not rush to assume that all people who grieve a long time are struggling with this condition. People who have experienced the traumatic death of a loved one may take longer to work through the bereavement process. That can be especially true in the case of murder or accidental deaths. There may be long legal battles causing them to relive the incident repeatedly.
It seems that the key difference between healthy and unhealthy grief is whether or not a person is continuing to progress though the grief cycle or whether they have become stuck in one of the stages, especially the intense reaction stages. A person who is suffering from chronic grief very likely will need the help of a good counselor to work through the stage they are stuck in, so that they can begin healing Return from Chronic Grief to Types of Bereavement Return to Bereavement Home Page
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