In this new approach to understanding the impact of grief, Susan A.
Berger goes beyond the commonly held theories of stages of grief with a
new typology for self-awareness and personal growth*.* She offers
practical advice for healing from a major loss in this presentation of
five basic ways, or types, of grieving. These five types describe how
different people respond to a major loss. The types are:
- Nomads, who have not yet resolved their grief and don't often
understand how their loss has affected their lives
- Memorialists, who are committed to preserving the memory of their
loved ones by creating concrete memorials and rituals to honor them
- Normalizers, who are committed to re-creating a sense of family and
community
- Activists, who focus on helping other people who are dealing with
the same disease or issues that caused their loved one's death
- Seekers, who adopt religious, philosophical, or spiritual beliefs to
create meaning in their lives
Drawing on research results and anecdotes from working with the bereaved
over the past ten years, Berger examines how a person's worldview is
affected after a major loss. According to her findings, people
experience significant changes in their sense of mortality, their values
and priorities, their perception of and orientation toward time, and the
manner in which they "fit" in society. The five types of grieving, she
finds, reflect the choices people make in their efforts to adapt to
dramatic life changes.
By identifying with one of the types, readers who have suffered a recent
loss--or whose lives have been shaped by an early loss--find ways of
understanding the impact of the loss and of living more fully.
