Parental Loss and Prolonged Grief: A Qualitative Analysis

Abstract

Loss of someone who is central to one’s life is a fundamental, universal, existential experience. Grieving is the first of all processes that the survivors experience to get through the pain, this involves an intimate and private experience and also inserted social characteristics. However, the factor of parental loss and prolonged grief in children and adolescents has a marking effect on their day to day physical, psychological, emotional, social and understanding of self. Here, the researcher has explored the process of grieving, prolonged grief, coping strategies, future hopelessness, changes in day-to-day life, sense of self after loss of parents through interpretative phenomenological analysis examining lived experiences of the individuals through Heidegger’s perspective. The sample was children and adolescents through purposive sampling enrolled under PM Cares Fund for children that aims to support children who have lost both parents/surviving parent/adoptive parent to COVID-19 pandemic during the period starting from 11th March, 2020. Five major themes were extracted in the interpretation of interview transcripts. These are time of polycrises, life around parents, social support, needs and living the altered life. Exploring long term effects of such loss and exploring individual needs may help plan intervention as per individual care plan and also to evaluate psychological, social and economic interventions planned and developed by the government. This research provides evidence to help psychologists who can fill this gap by partnering with educators, other surviving parent and community partners to share the burden of childhood trauma and grief on a broader scale. The research provides intervention planning about training those who are in regular contact with children to recognize the signs they need to help children and adolescents.