Most individuals experience the pain and emotional upheaval of bereavement and resolve their grief with the aid of supportive cultural rituals. Cultural and psychotherapeutic rituals are designed to aid the bereaved in grief resolution.
The main character of bereavement rituals, and their power in grief resolution, is the use of a framework within which to make use of symbols and symbolic language. They form a pattern to our lives and life cycle by providing order and stability to our way of life whilst also marking change.
Carrying out the ritual, publicly or privately, provides a method of expression for a bereaved individual. The repetitive nature of rituals helps with managing feelings associated with strong emotions (such as anger, anxiety, sadness etc.) by providing a sense of structure and order in a time of chaos and disorder. This may act as a pathway on the road to healing the grief of bereavement.
Funeral Rituals
Funeral rituals provide such a framework through their symbolic portrayals that can act as meaningful experiences for the bereaved. Funeral rituals act as intermediaries for the transition of the deceased from life to death and also act as markers of transition for the bereaved.
They also allow for the public display of communal grief, which affirms the relationship of the deceased to the community, and the continuity of the deceased’s relationship to the community. Post-funeral bereavement rituals provide further structure to the grieving and mark a transition for them into a new social relationship within their family and community.
Psychotherapy as a Ritual
Bereavement counselling and psychotherapy, offer the bereaved an opportunity to experience and work through strong feelings associated with their loss, and to review their past, current and future relationship with the deceased. This in itself can be viewed as a symbolic ritual in that psychotherapy takes place on a regular basis, for a set period of time, in a particular space, and is separated off from the rest of social life.
Therefore, within mental health, rituals play a critical role in the resolution of grief and healing. They can safely assist a bereaved individual in adapting their relationship with the deceased through a process that engages the mourner in symbolic acts which can lead to a sense of control over events and feelings.
Summary
The psychotherapist needs to maintain a sensitivity to individual as well as culturally shared values and meaning, and a willingness to collaborate with the client in the creation of ritual.
This offers the client the opportunity to tell a new story which affirms the past, acknowledges the changes in the present, and offers hope for the future. Additionally, it also reflects the awareness that relationships continue beyond death through a continuing bond between the deceased and the bereaved.
References:
A full list of references is available in the Reference Material section.
- Barnet, L. ed. (2009) When Death Enters the Therapeutic Space: Existential Perspectives in Psychotherapy and Counselling. Hove: Routledge.
- Moodley, R and West, W. ed. (2005) Integrating Traditional Healing Practices Into Counselling and Psychotherapy. London: Sage.
- Romanoff BD and Terenzio M (1998) Rituals and the Grieving Process, Death Studies, 22(8).
