Bereavement stressors and psychosocial well-being of young adults following the loss of a parent – A cross-sectional survey

Double bereavement, mental health consequences and support needs of children and young adults—When a divorced parent dies

“…Research has found that it is difficult to implement family‐centred care when families have ongoing conflicts (Kramer et al, ; Russell et al, ). Effectiveness of family support is positively related to cohesive family dynamics and mental health capital within the family worlds (Lundberg et al, ; Thastum et al, ). To reduce the impact of overload, it is essential for professionals to support both family worlds to cooperate in supporting the double bereaved children and young adults within them, to cope with the stressors they experience (Lundberg et al, ; Marcussen, Hounsgaard, Bruun, et al, ; Margaret Stroebe & Schut, ).…”

“…Effectiveness of family support is positively related to cohesive family dynamics and mental health capital within the family worlds (Lundberg et al, ; Thastum et al, ). To reduce the impact of overload, it is essential for professionals to support both family worlds to cooperate in supporting the double bereaved children and young adults within them, to cope with the stressors they experience (Lundberg et al, ; Marcussen, Hounsgaard, Bruun, et al, ; Margaret Stroebe & Schut, ). Our findings suggest a priority for improving support opportunities from close relationships and professionals at an earlier point for double bereaved children and young adults so as to reduce the adverse impacts of the transitions and disruptions they experience overall.…”

“…Each phase of interventions includes knowledge and actions. The family structure and family functioning should also be considered, when children and young adults attend support groups pre‐ and postparental death to ensure targeted support is achieved (Ellis et al, ; Lundberg et al, ; Thastum et al, ). Children and young adults often want to be involved when a divorced parent dies of cancer, but they require support to enable them to cope flexibly while navigating an uncertain future (Kari E. Bugge et al, ; Werner‐Lin et al, ).…”

“…This includes risk of stress overload and prolonged grief, when facing a divorced parents' cancer and death (Gordon, Duttera, Lee, Cincotta, & Haltom, 1999;Johnsen et al, 2018;Marcussen, Hounsgaard, O'Connor, et al, 2019a;Stroebe & Schut, 2016). Young adults in a cross-sectional survey reported, in general, an overall poor psychosocial well-being following parental death, with risk of mild-to-severe anxiety and depression and low self-esteem and life satisfaction (Lundberg et al, 2018). When children experience parental divorce followed by parental cancer and death, they are found to have a higher risk of mental health problems, compared with when a child experiences parental cancer and death in a nondivorced family (Lu, Mueser, Rosenberg, & Jankowski, 2008;Marcussen, Hounsgaard, O'Connor, et al, 2019a;Oakley Browne, Joyce, Wells, Bushnell, & Hornblow, 1995;Werner-Lin, Biank, & Rubenstein, 2010).…”

Poor Psychosocial Well-Being in the First Year-and-a-Half After Losing a Parent to Cancer – A Longitudinal Study Among Young Adults Participating in Support Groups

“…Many young adults who have lost a parent in their teens experience unresolved grief many years after the loss (Bylund-Grenklo, Furst, Nyberg, Steineck, & Kreicbergs, 2016). Additionally, young adults who have lost a parent or someone close may demonstrate symptoms of anxiety and depression (Lundberg et al, 2018;Mash, Fullerton, Shear, & Ursano, 2014). Further, bereavement has been shown to have a negative impact on self-esteem as well as on life satisfaction (Luhmann, Hofmann, Eid, & Lucas, 2012;Marks, Jun, & Song, 2007).…”