Author Description

The loss of an intimate exposes the afflicted person to a higher risk for several types of psychiatric disorders. In addition to potential complications, including Major Depression, anxiety disorders, and PTSD, the existence of pathologic forms of grief cannot be denied. Jacobs introduces the term Traumatic Grief as a descriptor of this diagnostic entity. Using the perspective of a biopsychosocial, medical model (including epidemiology and public health), and the theoretical framework of attachment theory, the author develops the concept of Traumatic Grief as a new nosologic entity. Diagnostic criteria, descriptive features, and the clinical course of Traumatic Grief are detailed as the author verifies the concept of Traumatic Grief as a disorder. The text continues with a review of the treatment literature and moves to the presentation of a diagnosis and treatment algorithm based on the literature review as well as the author's long experience in the treatment of clinical complications of bereavement. The epidemiology, social and cultural variation, and the prevention of Traumatic Grief are discussed in this text that, by format, follows the outline for disorders used in the DSM and therefore makes this a useful tool for the practicing clinician. This is the first book for clinicians that presents and discusses diagnostic criteria and evidence-based treatment for Traumatic Grief. Using this book, professional caregivers - psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, social workers, nurse clinicians, bereavement counselors, and students in these fields - will be better able to identify Traumatic Grief and utilize a framework for professional help and prevention.