Beyond Widowhood: From Bereavement to Emergence and Hope

In an effort to come to terms with his own widowerhood, DiGiulio ( Effective Parenting ), the father of two, kept a ``bereavement journal'' and conducted research and bereavement seminars. In this constructive, insightful book he identifies patterns resulting from widow- or widowerhood: fear, numbness, denial, anger, survival guilt or in some cases relief, along with physical ailments and suicidal depression. Their duration and intensity, he notes, vary according to the marital relationship, circumstances of death, financial conditions, etc. In discussing ``emergence'' from bereavement, the author avoids hard-and-fast rules but suggests practical and psychological options ranging from changes of career and locality to involvement in support groups. Volunteer, educational and social activities, he counsels, help develop the self-acceptance as an independent, single adult required for stable parent-child relationships and eventual remarriage. (Mar.)