Death, Value and Meaning Series, John D. Morgan, Series Editor

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IN PRAISE OF
"I received this book to review soon after the events of September 11. It was an awkward experience to review a book about loss when the number of lives lost in the terrorist attacks that day was so high. I wondered how any book could help individuals and communities grieve and cope with such loss. However, I was impressed by the content of this book and its emphasis on what are probably the very ideas that are essential in helping people cope. The book is well organized and highly readable. The authors of Complicated Grieving and Bereavement identify important issues involved in bereavement, but, more importantly, they emphasize the use of the many strengths our patients can draw on. They address a variety of of practical issues, many of which seem especially applicable in the aftermath of the recent terrorist attacks. This book is a valuable addition to the resources of any clinician who will deal with loss and bereavement."
—Jeffrey L . Geller, M.D., M.P.H., Editor, Psychiatric Services, May 2002, Volume 53, Number 5

"While the book covers a wide scope, it's strengths lie in an exploration of grief in specific populations, rather than in a systematic review of complicated grief. Of particular interest is the inclusion of chapters on spiritual abuse and dementia, which alerts practitioners and researchers to issues not commonly dealt with."
—Jane Powell, Department of Forensic Medicine Counselling Unit, Sydney, Australia, Grief Matters 9(2), Winter 2006

ABOUT THE BOOK
Losses may provide a turning point where an individual faces personal and social choices. Still, one may derive significance through the experience of loss, while another may encounter bereavement with less consequence. Complicated Grieving and Bereavement: Understanding and Treating People Experiencing Loss examines complicated grief in special populations, including the mentally ill, POW-MIA survivors, the differentially-abled, suicide survivors, bereaved children, those experiencing death at birth, death in schools, and palliative-care death.

This book offers twenty-one chapters that cover a range of topics including the use of humor, music, puppeteering, drama, family systems, spiritual care, and support groups as practical suggestions and aids to those managing complicated grief in the face of traumatic death.

ABOUT THE EDITORS
Robert A. Bendiksen, PH.D., is professor of sociology and director of the Center for Death Education & Bioethics at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. The Wisconsin Sociological Association awarded Dr. Bendiksen the 1999 George Floro Award for Outstanding Service to the Discipline of Sociology. He serves as the Secretariat of the International Work  group on Death, Dying and Bereavement, is the co-editor of Illness, Crisis & Loss, and co-editor of The Midwest Sociologist.

Gerry R. Cox, PH.D., is an associate professor of sociology and associate with the Center for Death Education &  Bioethics at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. He has over forty-five publications, is an educator, and a member of the International Work Group on Death, Dying and Bereavement. Dr. Cox instructs hospice volunteers, facilitates bereavement groups, lectures and conducts workshops. He is also  co-editor of Illness, Crisis & Loss, and co-editor of The Midwest Sociologist.

Robert G. Stevenson, PH.D., is a retired secondary school educator and counselor. He is an active member of the Association of Death Education and Counseling and the International Work Group on Dying, Death and Bereavement. He is the recipient of the 1997 Wendell Williams Teaching Award and the 1993 ADEC Death Educator Award for his contribution in the field. Dr. Stevenson is currently teaching a reentry program for adult parolees and is an instructor in the graduate counseling program at Mercy College, New York.