InHealing after Parent Loss in Childhood and Adolescence: Therapeutic Interventions and Theoretical Considerations, experts explore the varied, often complex, and always tragic circumstances under which young people face losing a parent. Profound grief and feelings of powerlessness may accompany loss of a parent at any age, but distinctly so when such loss is experienced during formative years. Whenever these individuals seek help, therapists must be psychically prepared to enter into arenas of trauma, bereavement, and mourning. The children, teens, and adults presented are diverse in age, culture/ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. A diverse group of contributors showcase a wide range of effective approaches—from traditionally structured short- and long-term psychotherapies and psychoanalysis, to psycho-educational, supportive, and preventive interventions. The writers in this volume do not shy away from tough matters such as urban violence, AIDS, and war; they address concerns practicing clinicians face, such as when to work with children, adolescents, and adults individually, and when and how to involve their surviving parents and families. Included in this book are issues related to the self-care and professional development needs of therapists who take on this difficult but essential work, including peer support and supervision. This volume is likely to spark important re-examinations across all fields of mental health practice. It will equip and empower clinicians of all kinds who undertake work with those who are grieving. Healing after Parent Loss in Childhood and Adolescence promises to be a vital and stimulating read for supervisors, teachers, and trainers of child, adolescent, and family clinicians.

Examines the long-term ramifications for adult women who, as adolescent girls, lost their fathers to death, divorce, or addiction; helps them understand how their behaviors were shaped by that loss at a pivotal developmental stage; and provides some interactive exercises to help them heal. Original.

In this unique book, Grace Christ relates the powerfully moving stories of eighty-eight families and their 157 children (ages 3 to 17) who participated in a parent-guidance intervention through the terminal illness and death of one of the parents from cancer. Using extensive case examples throughout, Healing Children's Grief: Surviving a Parent's Death from Cancer provides a detailed examination of how children and adolescents cope with this loss. Covering a critical 20 month period, from 6 months before to 14 months after the death of a parent, Christ reports that a majority of the children successfully adapted to the loss during the subsequent months after the death. The book is divided into two major sections. The first summarizes the theoretical background and methodology. The second presents the findings of the five developmentally derived age groups (3-5, 6-8, 9-11, 12-14, and 15-17). Using qualitative analytic methods, these findings clarify important differences in children's grief and mourning processes, in their understanding of events, in their interactions with families, and in their varying needs for help and support. The author describes how parents participated in healing their children's grief by: preparing, informing, and guiding children through the experience; understanding their developmental needs; supporting and resonating with their unique expressions of grief; helping them construct a positive legacy; and reconstituting relationships without the day to day presence of the parent who died. Healing Children's Grief: Surviving a Parent's Death from Cancer provides practical guidance and direction for professionals and physicians, nurses, social workers, therapists, guidance counselors, and teachers.

Offers teenagers an informative discussion on the pain of losing one's parent, providing techniques and guidance for learning to deal with the loss through the various stages of one's young life.

This is the authoritative guide to conducting trauma-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy (TF-CBT), a systematic, evidence-based treatment for traumatized children and their families. Provided is a comprehensive framework for assessing posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, and other symptoms; developing a flexible, individualized treatment plan; and working collaboratively with children and parents to build core skills in such areas as affect regulation and safety. Specific guidance is offered for responding to different types of traumatic events, with an entire section devoted to grief-focused components. Useful appendices feature resources, reproducible handouts, and information on obtaining additional training. TF-CBT has been nationally recognized as an exemplary evidence-based program. See also the edited volume Trauma-Focused CBT for Children and Adolescents: Treatment Applications for more information on tailoring TF-CBT to children's varying developmental levels and cultural backgrounds.

"The book is well organized, well detailed, and well referenced; it is an invaluable sourcebook for researchers and clinicians working in the area of bereavement. For those with limited knowledge about bereavement, this volume provides an excellent introduction to the field and should be of use to students as well as to professionals," states Contemporary Psychology. The Lancet comments that this book "makes good and compelling reading....It was mandated to address three questions: what is known about the health consequences of bereavement; what further research would be important and promising; and whether there are preventive interventions that should either be widely adopted or further tested to evaluate their efficacy. The writers have fulfilled this mandate well."

This new edition of When Parents Die will speak to bereaved children of all ages in a very accessible style. Rebecca Abrams draws on both her personal and professional understanding of parental loss to provide the reader with a compassionate and insightful exploration of the experience of losing a parent. When Parents Die has already established itself as an indispensable aid both to the bereaved seeking some understanding of their loss and to the many professionals who work with them. This new edition takes into account new research and theories and considers in more depth: *the continuing importance of the dead parent in ones life *the critical role played by the surviving parent *the experiences of younger children *the impact of divorce and adoption. Retaining its clear, direct and sympathetic style, this text will continue to appeal to the bereaved, their friends and family, counsellors, social workers, doctors, nurses and teachers.

The founder of RAINBOWS, Inc., a formal support system for children and teens who experience loss through divorce, death, and crisis, presents a counseling program that helps adults understand how children perceive loss. Marta's unique approach includes use of play-based activities. 30 illustrations.

According to a recent U.S. census, approximately 2.5 million children under the age of eighteen have experienced the death of a parent. Losing a parent at such a young age can have devastating consequences. Beyond the grief children and young adults experience, they can be at risk for many negative outcomes, including depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress symptoms, as well as diminished self-esteem. Their academic success and relationships with others can also be adversely affected. For these young adults, help is not always easy to find. In Parental Death: The Ultimate Teen Guide, Michelle Shreeve offers a variety of ways in which young people can cope with this tough experience. In addition to outlining the universal difficulties of losing a parent, the author also points out the unique dynamics of specific losses--sons who lose fathers, daughters who lose mothers, sons who lose mothers, and daughters who lose fathers—and what those losses can mean for their future development. This book also identifies how the challenges of life without a parent can affect a young adult at different stages. Featuring real stories and quotes from teens about their experiences, this book shows young adults a variety of views about the death of a parent, and provides coping strategies that young people can call upon to help them through this difficulty. Parental Death: The Ultimate Teen Guide serves as a valuable resource for all teens, whether they are dealing with tragedy personally or are looking for ways to console friends or siblings.

Psychosis in Childhood and Adolescence offers an in-depth examination of the nature of psychosis, its risk factors and its manifestations in children and adolescents who experience a continuum of emotional disorders. The chapters present a hopeful, research-based framework for treatment. They emphasize combined treatment that is based on psychodynamic and cognitive behavioral psychotherapy principles, pharmacological interventions and supportive family approaches that reflect the vulnerabilities and resources of the individual child. This text highlights the importance of thorough assessment and the need for long-term treatment that facilitates the psychotic child’s healthy maturation. Readers will benefit from the case examples that illustrate the complexity of psychosis and the discussions of diagnostic and treatment issues as presented by experienced clinicians and researchers.