Death of the Future?: An Outcome Study of Bereaved Parents in Israel

Child loss has been described as the most devastating of bereavements. To explore this multidimensional phenomena, thirteen Israeli parents bereaved of young children were compared with forty-two parents who had lost sons to war. Although all parents demonstrated pronounced mourning, those bereaved of adult sons were particularly affected by the loss. This was true for the initial year as well as the current status of the bereavement response, an average of ten years post loss. These findings are discussed and implications for the family are considered.