In the Presence of Grief
Helping Family Members Resolve Death, Dying, and Bereavement Issues
Dorothy S. Becvar
HardcoverPaperback
Hardcover
orderSeptember 24, 2001
ISBN 9781572306974
Price: $89.00 284 Pages
Size: 6" x 9"
Paperback
orderAugust 8, 2003
ISBN 9781572309371
Price: $39.00 284 Pages
Size: 6" x 9"
Illuminating the impact of loss and grief on our psychological and emotional lives, this book provides vital guidance to ease painful transitions and facilitate healing. The author emphasizes that dealing with the death of a loved one involves more than picking up the pieces and moving on: rather, healing is an ongoing journey on which grief is a constant companion. For those in a supportive role, the focus is on helping the bereaved to navigate the grieving process and, ultimately, to reclaim joy as well as sadness as an integral part of life. Filled with personal narratives and examples, the book demonstrates effective ways to help survivors cope with commonly experienced issues, problems, and concerns.
“All authors aspire to make an impact. A few succeed. Dorothy Becvar's work is an example of such an achievement. ...Clinicians will find many ideas that can be applied immediately in their day-to-day work with families and individuals. This book will help students at all levels understand the main issues of resolution and grief.”
—Death Studies
“This is an excellent resource for clinicians, pastors, grief counselors, professors, and anyone else concerned with caring for those who grieve. It is uniquely thorough and insightful, well written, and admirably humane in its tone.”
—Family Ministry
Table of Contents
Foreword, Pauline BossI. The Contexts of Grief.
1. Introduction.
2. Understanding Death, Dying, and Bereavement.
3. When Death Comes Unannounced.
4. When Death Is Anticipated.
5. When the Question of Euthanasia Emerges.
6. When a Child Dies.
7. When a Sibling Dies.
8. When a Parent Dies.
9. When a Spouse Dies.
10. When an Extended Family Member or Friend Dies.
II. Grief in the Context of Therapy.
11. Creating Funerals, Ceremonies, and Other Healing Rituals.
12. Searching for Meaning.
13. Reclaiming Joy
About the Author
Dorothy S. Becvar, PhD, until her death in 2021, was a therapist, teacher, and trainer based in St. Louis, Missouri. She cofounded and directed the St. Louis Family Institute and later The Haelan Centers, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting the growth and wholeness of clients in body, mind, and spirit. Dr. Becvar published extensively and presented workshops and courses nationally and internationally on a wide variety of topics. She has served on the faculties of the University of Missouri–St. Louis, St. Louis University, Texas Tech University, Washington University, and Radford University.Audience
Clinical psychologists, family therapists, psychiatrists, social workers, and counselors working with families; physicians and nurses in palliative care settings; hospice professionals. While written for professionals, the book's sensitive coverage of universal themes also makes it suitable for general readers.Serves as a text in advanced undergraduate- and graduate-level courses.