Name that Grief
A family has no confirmation whether a missing relative is alive or dead. What type of loss prevents clear closure?
Ambiguous Loss
A widow still listens for her spouse's key in the door every evening. Which mourning task needs the most attention?
Accepting the reality of the loss
After an assault, a client says, 'I no longer recognize who I am.' What primary loss is being described?
Loss of identity or former self
A client recognizes that disabling depression began immediately after a death. Which complicated grief pattern may be present?
Exaggerated Grief
A client feels ashamed for grieving a breakup because no one died. What should the therapist validate first?
Non-death losses as disenfranchised grief
A client meets another survivor who immediately understands her experience. Why can this be especially helpful?
Reduces isolation and provides validation
Parents of a child with a severe disorder believe the diagnosis proves they failed as parents. What loss are they expressing?
Loss of confidence as parents
A person who initiated a divorce says, 'I chose this, so I should not be sad.' What should the therapist explain?
Choosing to leave does not eliminate attachment loss
A client reports physical symptoms that closely resemble those of a deceased relative. What possibility should the therapist assess?
Unresolved grief may be expressed through identification symptoms
A therapist invites a client to speak to the deceased using an empty chair. What is the primary purpose?
To express unresolved feelings and complete unfinished business
What death occurs without warning in babies that appear healthy?
SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome)
While caring for a terminally ill spouse, a client begins imagining future household responsibilities. What process is occurring?
Anticipatory Grief
A bereaved client refuses to view photographs or discuss any memory of the deceased. Which task is being avoided?
Processing the pain
After disclosing an assault, a survivor loses several friendships. What type of loss is this?
Secondary social loss
A client develops unexplained chest pain after a parent's death but denies any connection to the loss. What pattern is this?
Masked Grief
A client repeatedly checks a former partner's social media and becomes distressed. What practical intervention is most appropriate?
Mute, unfollow, or block the former partner
A bereaved partner hides the cause of death because of anticipated judgment. What social problem is intensifying the grief?
Stigma
Parents of a critically ill newborn are overwhelmed with hospital logistics and cannot process emotions. What should counseling emphasize first?
Stabilization and practical support
Why can divorce after 20 years produce more secondary losses than ending a brief relationship?
It may involve shared children, finances, home, routines, and social networks
Before beginning focused grief treatment, what should a therapist assess besides the loss itself?
Current functioning, support system, safety, and significant psychopathology
A client relies on a deceased spouse's object so heavily that daily functioning stops without it. What is the treatment goal?
Shift attachment from the object to the memories it represents
What is the predominant feeling for survivors of loss by suicide?
Shame
A client spends one day crying over a loss and the next day arranging childcare and returning to work. Which model explains this movement?
Dual Process
A client must learn to drive because the deceased partner handled all transportation. Which mourning task does this represent?
Adjusting to a world without the deceased
A survivor must repeat the same account to multiple agencies and feels exposed each time. What has she most directly lost?
Privacy
A person shows little grief during a family crisis but becomes overwhelmed years later after another loss. What pattern is this?
Delayed Grief
Before treating unexplained physical symptoms as grief-related, what should be confirmed?
A medical condition has been adequately ruled out
Community support is strong immediately after a child's diagnosis but disappears months later. What process may the family be experiencing?
Marginalization
A caregiver admits having moments of wishing a suffering loved one's ordeal would end and then feels guilty. How should the therapist respond?
Normalize and explore the ambivalence without judgment
What makes grief after divorce especially complex when former partners share custody?
Contact with the former partner continues
A client repeatedly changes the subject whenever the deceased is mentioned. What is the best therapist response?
Gently redirect and explore what is being avoided
A client fears that healing means forgetting the deceased. What therapeutic idea directly addresses this fear?
The relationship can continue through memories without constant active grieving
Before working with grieving clients, counselors are encouraged to explore their own experiences with loss to better understand their reactions and limitations.
personal loss history
A parent experiences renewed grief at each milestone a child with a lifelong disability may never reach. What is this recurring grief called?
Chronic Sorrow
A client wants to remember the deceased while also building a meaningful future. Which task does this reflect?
Finding endruring connection while moving foward
A survivor says the world no longer feels safe, fair, or predictable. What concept does this illustrate?
Shattered assumptive world
A client remains intensely preoccupied with a death for many years with almost no improvement in functioning. What pattern should be assessed?
Chronic Grief
Why might a therapist begin with positive memories before discussing anger toward the deceased?
Establish emotional safety
A worker conceals a psychiatric diagnosis to avoid being treated differently. What term did Goffman use for this strategy?
Passing
Parents blame themselves for an infant's sudden unexplained death despite medical evidence. What intervention is most appropriate?
Sensitive support, psychoeducation, and gradual reality-testing of guilt
A breakup client schedules 15 minutes daily to intentionally notice grief instead of feeling flooded all day. What intervention is being used?
Scheduled grief time or mindful grief practice
A murder investigation remains active and the family says mourning cannot begin until all facts are known. What is delaying adaptation?
Ongoing legal involvement and uncertainty
One grieving partner cries openly while the other grieves privately. What should couples counseling emphasize?
Communication and respect for different coping styles
Understanding one’s own coping patterns, unresolved grief, and emotional triggers helps counselors avoid this professional problem.
impaired clinical effectiveness
A person mourns a relationship that family members refused to acknowledge. What kind of grief may result from this lack of social recognition?
Disenfranchised Grief
A client remains stuck after months of treatment. According to Worden, what should the therapist assess before choosing the next intervention?
Which task of mourning remains unresolved
A client reaches a distress level of 10 out of 10 while discussing trauma. What should the therapist do before continuing?
Stabilize and regulate the client before moving forward with grief work
A violent death, uncertain circumstances, public stigma, and an ongoing trial are examples of what kinds of complicated-grief risks?
Circumstantial and social risk factors
A grieving client also has severe untreated PTSD. What treatment priority generally comes first?
Stabilization and treatment of PTSD
A client says every emotion is interpreted through the lens of a psychiatric diagnosis. What is this an example of?
Lifelong labeling and stigma
A serious diagnosis causes parents to mourn the future they expected for their child. What type of loss is this?
Loss of the imagined future
A therapist helps a newly single client identify values, goals, and roles unrelated to the former partner. What is the main treatment goal?
Rebuilding identity outside the relationship
Which three broad indicators can show that grief therapy has been effective?
Improved subjective experience, behavioral change, and symptom relief
A suicide-bereaved client insists the death was accidental despite strong evidence. What should the therapist do?
Gently confront the reality of the death while addressing denial
A counselor avoids conversations about death because they fear upsetting clients. This behavior demonstrates a lack of this quality.
death competence