sudden unexpected death at any age. A short illness provides time for anticipatory grief, for reparation and reconciliation, for saying good-bye, and for making plans for the future
a very long illness. This may provoke premature detachment on the part of the family, or the family may be exhausted by years of caring. Alternatively, the relatives, when bereaved, may feel they no longer have anything to live for and need much encouragement to make new beginnings
where there has been long-standing ambivalence in a relationship, guilt over the negative aspects may take a self-punitive form
a clinging, dependent relationship usually bodes ill for either partner
where the death is from suicide
parents who lose a child on the brink of maturity
elderly parents whose adult child dies
where the support of others may be withheld eg the death of a homosexual partner.
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