Mourners have a need to remember their loved one and to speak of them often. The need to say the loved one’s name, to hear others say the loved one’s name, to share memories or to tell their story of loss again and again over even long periods of time is not a morbid or pathological need if the person is mourning in a healthy way.
The need to remember and talk about the loved one who has died springs from the deeply held desire to keep the person “alive” with treasured memories, physical keepsakes and meaningful rituals. Mourners live with the unspoken fear that everyone around them will forget the loved one. Worst of all, mourners fear that they will forget their loved one.
But many times family members and friends around the mourner keep silent about the death, their grief, the mourner’s grief, and the loved one no longer present for four reasons:
- They want…
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Loss, Grief, Bereavement and Life Transitions Resource Library 