Types of Grief

Grief can take on many different shapes and forms. While the most commonly known type of grief is the grief after losing someone or something important to us, this is only one of many different forms of grief. The different types of grief include:

Complicated Grief

Complicated grief is a form of grief that diverges significantly from the usual expectations of grief. There are three different types of complicated grief: chronic, absent, and delayed.

Chronic Grief Grief that lasts longer and/or feels more intense than is expected is usually considered to be chronic grief.

Absent Grief Absent grief is defined as a form of complicated grief in which one shows little to no emotions about the loss of a loved one. It is believed that absent grief is the result of denial or avoidance.

Delayed Grief Those whose grief does not appear immediately after their loss but shows up months or even years later are considered to be experiencing delayed grief.

Inhibited Grief

Those experiencing inhibited grief typically refuse to allow themselves to experience their signs and symptoms of grief fully. Rather than allowing themselves to feel their emotions and move on, those experiencing inhibited grief will restrain their emotions, thoughts, and overall grieving process, hoping to ignore the pain and move on with their lives. Inhibited grief can be detrimental to the grieving process, causing the grief to stick around longer than it would have if the person allowed themselves to experience their grief.

Anticipatory Grief

When a person expects to lose a loved one soon, they will likely experience anticipatory grief. Anticipatory grief is when a person begins their grieving process before they have lost the person they love. This form of grief can have positive and negative impacts on a person’s grieving process. For some, it may make the loss of their loved one a little more bearable as they have already begun their grieving process. For others, it may lead to them withdrawing from their dying loved one, leading to later regrets or impeding one’s grieving process.

Disenfranchised Grief

Disenfranchised grief is characterized as grief that may not be readily accepted by society. Because of this, the people around the grieving person may limit their ability to grieve or not allow them to express their grief in the ways that they need to. A few examples of disenfranchised grief include grieving the loss of a pregnancy, a doctor’s loss of a patient, or the loss of a pet.  Disenfranchised grief can have detrimental impacts on a person’s healing process, leading to feelings of isolation and suppressed emotions.