Reweaving grief: Transformative bereavement intervention

Abstract

Bereaved persons struggle over the handling of belongings of the deceased. On the one hand, they feel drawn to the belongings. On the other hand, they would like to avoid the reminders. This struggle complicates the normal grieving process. A creative bereavement intervention called 'Reweaving Grief', which transforms the painful emotions and thoughts related to the deceased, is designed. The intervention is of six D steps: discuss, decide, design, dismantle, displace and direct. It has been pilot-tested with 13 bereaved persons. This presentation will outline the theories, the model, the intervention steps and the findings of the evaluation. LEARNING OBJECTIVES: • Describe the theories underlying reweaving grief intervention • Translate bereavement theories into handling the belongings of the bereaved person • Apply the reweaving grief techniques for bereaved persons

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