In
this new approach to understanding the impact of grief, Susan A. Berger goes
beyond the commonly held theories of stages of grief with a new typology for
self-awareness and personal growth. She
offers practical advice for healing from a major loss in this presentation of
five basic ways, or types, of grieving. These five types describe how different
people respond to a major loss.
The types are:
Nomads,
who have not yet resolved their grief and don’t often understand how their loss
has affected their lives
Memorialists,
who are committed to preserving the memory of their loved ones by creating
concrete memorials and rituals to honor them
Normalizers,
who are committed to re-creating a sense of family and community
Activists,
who focus on helping other people who are dealing with the same disease or issues
that caused their loved one’s death
Seekers,
who adopt religious, philosophical, or spiritual beliefs to create meaning in
their lives
Drawing on research results and anecdotes
from working with the bereaved over the past ten years, Berger examines how a
person’s worldview is affected after a major loss. According to her findings, people
experience significant changes in their sense of mortality, their values and
priorities, their perception of and orientation toward time, and the manner in
which they “fit” in society. The five types of grieving, she finds, reflect the
choices people make in their efforts to adapt to dramatic life changes.
By identifying with one of the types,
readers who have suffered a recent loss—or whose lives have been shaped by an early
loss—find ways of understanding the impact of the loss and of living more
fully.