Author Description

Thanatology is a discipline which focuses on the practice of supportive physical and emotional care for those whoe are dying as well as their families. The essays collected for this volume discuss the entire continium of bereavement and grief. Among the topics discussed are Anticipatory Grief, the period following diagnosis of serious illness when the victim and family members must adapt to a new projection for the future, and Pathological Bereavement, the behavior pattern of those who find emotional recovery so difficult that everyday life becomes impossible. The book also includes instructive case studies which examine each phase of bereavement from a variety of professional perspectives.