End-of-Life Phenomena experiences have been described as supernatural and have been associated with delusion and psychopathology, but they are a common part of the grieving process (Barbato, et al., 1999; LaGrand, 2005; Beischel, et al., 2014). Damaris and Drewry (2003, p. 75) describe these experiences as ‘natural, non-pathological, mostly beneficial and comforting, helpful in facilitating the grieving process, and sometimes extraordinarily spiritually healing to a bereaved individual.’ Fenwick and Brayne (2011, p. 8) state that End-of-Life Phenomena experiences provide ‘spiritual moments which offer hope, meaning, and connection for the dying as well as their relatives, and support the relatives through the grieving process.’
End-of-Life Phenomena experiences may indicate that the deceased exist somewhere, are well, and that they will be met again, implying a temporary separation from the deceased which may give a bereaved person comfort and make living easier for them indicate (LaGrand, 2005; Kwilecki, 2011; Holden, 2012; Lawrence & Repede, 2013; Nosek, et al., 2015). They may therefore be significant moments that mark a transition from a physical bond where the deceased is missing, to a spiritual bond where the deceased has been recovered as a spiritual being (Field, et al., 2005; Klugman, 2006; Sanger, 2009).
With the recovery of the deceased person as a spiritual being, this spiritual bond may serve as an aspect of security akin to the concept of the secure base in attachment theory (Loetz, et al., 2013). End-of-Life Phenomena experiences may therefore fulfil a bereaved persons attachment needs for consolation, comfort, and reassurance and ‘initiate personal and/or spiritual growth, reduce existential fear and generate new perspectives and purpose in life through the questions they suggest, and the obvious answers provided’ (LaGrand, 2005, p. 9; Parker, 2005). This may help to preserve the bond with the deceased by developing it into an ongoing meaningful relationship that establishes ‘a dialectical balance between security and separation’ (Loetz, et al., 2013, p. 7) that has been shown to be beneficial in the resolution of grief (Walliss, 2001; Klugman, 2006; Sanger, 2009; Beischel, et al., 2014).
The comfort derived from these experiences by ‘soothing broken hearts instantly’ (Kwilecki, 2011, p. 225) may therefore play a role in grief resolution, and Steffen and Coyle (2010) suggest that if personal meaning of the experience can be made, it may result in positive benefits such as post-traumatic growth (Broden & Uveges, 2018).
References
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