What is Complicated Grief?
If one does not get better with time, he or she may be experiencing ‘complicated grief’. With ‘complicated grief,’ the grieving process does not progress as expected. The intensity and duration of grief is prolonged and dramatically interferes with a person’s ability to function. It is often characterized by long-lasting symptoms of depression and anxiety. Deaths such as suicides, murders, car crashes, and almost any other sudden and unexpected death can result in complicated grief simply because they leave people in such shock that they have great difficulty in integrating what happened into their reality. When the thoughts, feelings, behaviors and reactions to grief persist over long periods of time with little change or improvement, it is important to seek help from a qualified professional because complicated grief does not subside on its own.
