Childhood Grief Related to the Death of a Sibling
Childhood Grief Related to the Death of a Sibling
Unfortunately, children die each day, many leaving a childhood sibling survivor. Events such as those at Sandy Hook Elementary School or inner city violence bring the plight of the childhood sibling survivor more to the forefront. Although previous literature and research have focused on the grief process of adults or teenagers, an urgent need remains to understand the grief process of the younger sibling survivor. This article examines the grief process of a sibling survivor within the framework of childhood developmental stages to assist the family nurse practitioner in caring for the sibling survivor on the grief journey.
Siblings share a past, present, and future history that is unlike any other relationship; a sibling often reflects one's own self and world. With the death of a sibling during childhood, a child's world is irrevocably changed. This change is immediate, but the effects on the surviving sibling remain throughout his or her lifetime. The death of a child is an unprecedented tragedy that disrupts the core sense of the natural order of life—children should not die. The literature purports that the loss of a sibling during childhood, particularly for a girl, has a greater impact than the death of a parent.
This literature review explores the grief process of young children at each developmental stage when a sibling dies. While childhood death from disease or violence is more common in some developing countries, this article narrowly focuses on sibling survivor grief in the United States and how nurse practitioners (NPs), with their strong nursing foundation of caring, listening, counseling, and advocating, may be useful in the healing process.
The future of the surviving sibling depends on a successful journey through the grief process. Grief encompasses the internal thoughts and feelings that are given to the loss of a loved one. Grief is a work process in which the child must come to reconcile a future life without the lost sibling. This journey through grief is intertwined within the developmental stage of the child, who does not have the coping strategies or life experiences of an adult mourner. Previous research and programs have focused on adult and teenage sibling survivors. In today's world of tragedies, such as the mass shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, and the deaths from inner city violence, the family NP (FNP) must recognize the urgent need to understand the grief process of the childhood sibling survivor and base interventions on such evidence. The FNP is ideally poised as a family caregiver to assist in development of programs that aid the child's journey through the grief process within the bereaved family.
Abstract and Introduction
Abstract
Unfortunately, children die each day, many leaving a childhood sibling survivor. Events such as those at Sandy Hook Elementary School or inner city violence bring the plight of the childhood sibling survivor more to the forefront. Although previous literature and research have focused on the grief process of adults or teenagers, an urgent need remains to understand the grief process of the younger sibling survivor. This article examines the grief process of a sibling survivor within the framework of childhood developmental stages to assist the family nurse practitioner in caring for the sibling survivor on the grief journey.
Introduction
Siblings share a past, present, and future history that is unlike any other relationship; a sibling often reflects one's own self and world. With the death of a sibling during childhood, a child's world is irrevocably changed. This change is immediate, but the effects on the surviving sibling remain throughout his or her lifetime. The death of a child is an unprecedented tragedy that disrupts the core sense of the natural order of life—children should not die. The literature purports that the loss of a sibling during childhood, particularly for a girl, has a greater impact than the death of a parent.
This literature review explores the grief process of young children at each developmental stage when a sibling dies. While childhood death from disease or violence is more common in some developing countries, this article narrowly focuses on sibling survivor grief in the United States and how nurse practitioners (NPs), with their strong nursing foundation of caring, listening, counseling, and advocating, may be useful in the healing process.
The future of the surviving sibling depends on a successful journey through the grief process. Grief encompasses the internal thoughts and feelings that are given to the loss of a loved one. Grief is a work process in which the child must come to reconcile a future life without the lost sibling. This journey through grief is intertwined within the developmental stage of the child, who does not have the coping strategies or life experiences of an adult mourner. Previous research and programs have focused on adult and teenage sibling survivors. In today's world of tragedies, such as the mass shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, and the deaths from inner city violence, the family NP (FNP) must recognize the urgent need to understand the grief process of the childhood sibling survivor and base interventions on such evidence. The FNP is ideally poised as a family caregiver to assist in development of programs that aid the child's journey through the grief process within the bereaved family.
Source...