SOCIETY’S VIEWS OF LOSS

Different
cultures have different views of loss. For example, in Western society it is
not always acceptable. There is the idea
of the “stiff upper lip” and “coping well.”
People are often expected to be “well” again a couple of weeks after
suffering a bereavement and leave granted from work for bereavement is often
only a week or two weeks at most. This
is often compassionate leave for close relatives such as partners or children
or parents. But what about grandparents, close friends, and so on. You may have
had a very close relationship with them, but people may not expect you to have
compassionate leave for this type of loss.

Most of
us live in a multi-cultural society. Some cultures have built in methods of
supporting the bereaved, others tend to be unsupportive and the person feels
isolated. In some cultures, relatives
openly grieve, in others the widow is…