Thus, a person may experience extremely painful grief but, because of a need to appear stoic, may not mourn. Grief and mourning are intensely personal and unique experiences. We often refer to stages of grief, but these often do not occur in an orderly progression. Depending on the situation and the individuals involved, one may not experience some stages, or may cycle in and out of the same emotional state several times. A major loss often brings up echoes of past losses.
Loss often happens in a family context.
The family members grieve and mourn individually and as a group. The method of death, sudden or the culmination of a long illness is an important factor. A sudden or violent death may be particularly difficulty for the family to process because of the intense anger often involved. It didn t have to happen. However even if the death is the long expected release from a painful illness, it can still be a powerful experience.