Maternal Grief
Mothers feel maternal grief when their children die.
Although maternal love stops when a child is 33 months old, the threat of maternal grief never stops. If their children die before them, mothers feel the stabbing emotional pain of grief. And grieving mothers feel maternal grief until they die.
Maternal grief is strongest when children die as teenagers.
The closer a child was to 16 years of age when they died, the stronger the maternal grief that a mother feels. Mothers of dead teenagers feel stronger grief than mothers of dead infants or mothers of dead adult children.
Grieving mothers should avoid reminders of their dead children.
Mothers cannot help their dead children by remembering them. Mothers can only inflict more emotional pain on themselves by remembering. And the more grief that a mother feels, the less she can do for her remaining family. Although it seems callous, the best thing for a grieving mother and her family is to remove all reminders of a dead child. If necessary, the family might need to move.
Maternal grief causes frowning.
Mothers of dead children will involuntarily frown when feeling grief - the corners of their mouths turn down for at least a second or two.
Maternal grief can cause crying.
Grief can cause grieving mothers to cry because it releases suppressed crying. However, mothers will only cry if they are lonely. So not crying does not mean that a mother does not feel grief.
Although maternal love stops when a child is 33 months old, the threat of maternal grief never stops. If their children die before them, mothers feel the stabbing emotional pain of grief. And grieving mothers feel maternal grief until they die.
Maternal grief is strongest when children die as teenagers.
The closer a child was to 16 years of age when they died, the stronger the maternal grief that a mother feels. Mothers of dead teenagers feel stronger grief than mothers of dead infants or mothers of dead adult children.
Grieving mothers should avoid reminders of their dead children.
Mothers cannot help their dead children by remembering them. Mothers can only inflict more emotional pain on themselves by remembering. And the more grief that a mother feels, the less she can do for her remaining family. Although it seems callous, the best thing for a grieving mother and her family is to remove all reminders of a dead child. If necessary, the family might need to move.
Maternal grief causes frowning.
Mothers of dead children will involuntarily frown when feeling grief - the corners of their mouths turn down for at least a second or two.
Maternal grief can cause crying.
Grief can cause grieving mothers to cry because it releases suppressed crying. However, mothers will only cry if they are lonely. So not crying does not mean that a mother does not feel grief.
For more about emotions, visit: Happiness Dissected
