Acknowledging sexual bereavement: a path out of disenfranchised grief

Despite increasing awareness of the importance of sexuality for older adults, research and popular literature rarely acknowledge what we term “sexual bereavement” – mourning the loss of sexual intimacy when predeceased. The reluctance to acknowledge sexual bereavement may create “disenfranchised grief” leaving the bereaved unsupported in coping with this aspect of mourning. This preliminary study focuses on women in the United S tates and sought to determine whether they anticipate missing sex if predeceased, whether they would want to talk about this loss, and identified factors associated with communicating about sexual bereavement.
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - Category: Global & Universal Authors: Tags: Feature Source Type: research