A study has found that when a husband or wife dies, the remaining spouse's risk of dying is 66 per cent higher in the three months after their partner's death.
Losing a husband or wife is a devastating experience that many of us will have to face. About 40 percent of women and 13 percent of men who are 65 and older are widowed, according to latest census figures. Until recently, very little sound research existed about how we live on after a loved one has died. But in the past decade, social scientists with unprecedented access to large groups of widows and widowers have uncovered five surprising truths about losing a spouse.
UNDERSTANDING THE GRIEVING PERIOD
GRIEVING SPOUSE OSCILLATE:- For years, we’ve been told that grief comes in five stages: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. If we were to diagram those stages, the emotional trajectory would look something like a large capital W, with two major low points signifying anger or depression, and the top of the last upward leg of the W signifying acceptance. But when psychologist Toni Bisconti of the University of Akron asked recent widows to fill out daily questionnaires for three months, vast fluctuations occurred from one day to the next. A widow might feel anxious and blue one day, only to feel lighthearted and cheerful the next. In other words, we don’t grieve in stages at all, but oscillate rapidly. Over time, those swings diminish in both frequency and intensity until we reach a level of emotional adjustment..
GRIEVING DOES NOT LAST FOR ETERNITY:- One of the most important new findings has shown that for most of us, grief is a severe — but self-limiting — condition, not a permanent state. In one study of older men and women who had lost spouses, George A. Bonanno, a clinical psychologist at Teachers College, Columbia University, found that the core symptoms of grief — anxiety, depression, shock, intrusive thoughts — had lifted by six months after the loss for 50 percent of the participants. Smaller groups took up to 18 months or three years to resume normal functioning. Loss is forever, but thankfully, acute grief is not.
GRIEVING AFFECT MEN MORE:- For years, clinicians have been operating under the assumption that women grieve harder and longer than men. In 2001, psychologists Wolfgang and Margaret Stroebe (a husband-and-wife team) decided to examine all the existing research and came to the surprising conclusion that, after taking into account the higher rate of depression in the overall female population, men actually suffer more from being bereaved. We might be under the impression that widows despair more, but that’s because there are many more widows to observe.
MEN MORE LIKELY TO DIE AFTER THE DEATH OF THEIR WIVES
Professor Espinosa used data records from married people born between 1910 and 1930 to examine when partners died in relation to one another.
He found men who are grieving after their wife's death experience a 30 per cent increase in mortality. For women, there is no increased chance of dying due to the loss of their husband.
WOMEN MORE LIKELY TO DIE AFTER THE DEATH OF THEIR CHILD
The team also conducted research into maternal mortality, compiling results from more than 69,000 mothers aged between 20 and 50 over nine years.
He found that the impact on mother mortality is strongest in the two years immediately following the child's death, with grieving mothers three times more likely to die.
According to Prof Espinosa's results the chances of a mother dying increases as much as 133% after they lose a child.
Prof Espinosa, an expert in health and labour economics, said: "To my knowledge, this is the first study to empirically analyse this issue with a large, nationally represented US data set.
"The evidence of a heightened mortality rate for the mother, particularly in the first two years of the child's passing, is especially relevant to public health policy and the timing of interventions that aim to improve the adverse health outcomes mothers experience after the death of a child."
SURVIVING SPOUSE FACES HIGHER RISK OF DYING AFTER THE DEATH OF THEIR MATE
When a husband or wife dies, the surviving spouse faces a higher risk of dying over the next few months as well, according to a new report.
So both men and women face a higher risk of dying in the months after their spouse dies, research suggests. Scientists aren't sure if it's a 'grief-related mechanism,' or if the surviving spouse neglects their own health while their partner is sick.
Previous studies have looked at the so-called widowhood effect. But it wasn't completely clear how long the effect lasts.
"The widowhood question is interesting because it is ubiquitous. At some point or the other one partner will die leaving the other and this will happen to everyone regardless of class, caste, socioeconomic status," Dr. S. V. Subramanian told Reuters Health in an email. He worked on the study at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston.
Researchers still don't know what exactly causes the widowhood effect.
"It's possible it's a grief-related mechanism, or that providing care for the sick spouse causes illness in the surviving spouse, or that, as one's spouse gets sicker, the surviving spouse stops taking care of their own health," Subramanian said.
For the new analysis, the researchers looked at data from the University of Michigan Health and Retirement Study, which surveys more than 26,000 Americans over age 50 every two years.
They focused on 12,316 of the participants who were married in 1998. Subramanian and his colleagues followed those people through 2008 to determine which participants became widows or widowers, then recorded when they died.
There were 2,912 deaths during the study period. Of those, 2,373 were among married people who left a widow or widower behind. The other 539 deaths were among people who had become widows and widowers themselves.
Fifty of those people died within three months of losing their spouse, 26 died between three and six months later and 44 died between six and 12 months later.
Widows and widowers were more likely to die than people whose spouses were still living, on average. The effect was strongest during the first three months after a spouse's death, when they had a 66-percent increased chance of dying.
Because this study only looked at people over age 50, it isn't clear whether younger people would face the same risks after a spouse's death. But Subramanian said some evidence suggests the widowhood effect is actually stronger among younger people.
Family and friends can help a surviving spouse by being supportive and attentive, researchers said.
BROKEN HEART SYNDROME AFTER THE DEATH OF A SPOUSE AFFECT YOUNGER COUPLES MORE
Dr Subramanian said some evidence suggests the widowhood effect is actually stronger among younger people.
Last year, Marcus Ringrose, the grieving husband of Doctor Who actress Mary Tamm, died the day after her funeral.
Miss Tamm had died from cancer two weeks previously and he had given a ‘stunning’ 20-minute eulogy at her funeral.
But by the next morning, he was dead - of a broken heart.
An inquest heard that Mr Ringrose, 59, who was otherwise fit and well, had died of Sudden Adult Death Syndrome, a cardiac condition which can be triggered by emotional stress.
In the U.S., a Minnesota couple who were 'hopelessly in love' for all 65 years of their marriage, died within hours of each other, it was reported earlier this year.
Clifford and Eva Vevea spent their last few days together holding hands at their care home where they were staying.
Nurses at the home put their beds pushed their beds together so they could be together and Clifford aged 93 and Eva aged 90, passed away exactly the same way on the same day.
Local funeral director, Jim Bredman, referred to the close death of spouses as 'the anniversary syndrome' but said in most cases it occurs within a year or so.
SUPPORT AND CARE FOR THE GRIEVING SPOUSE
"What insulates people from grief and stress is a good sense of support. Be around for this person," Dr. Ken Doka told Reuters Health. He is a gerontologist at the Graduate School of The College of New Rochelle in New York and a senior consultant to the Hospice Foundation of America.
"Grief is extraordinarily stressful and when you're older and frailer it's harder to cope with stress," Doka, who wasn't involved in the new study, said.
The loss of a loved one might make for drastic changes in lifestyle habits. Doka advises friends and family to keep an eye on the surviving spouse to see how the person is handling those changes.
"Maybe they used to go for a walk every night but now they're not doing that anymore. Maybe they're not sleeping well, or maybe not taking their medications," said Doka. It helps to be there for them and to be supportive.
Spirituality and religion may also help some people get through a crisis, he said.
Doka said surviving male spouses may feel especially lonely because they don't know they need to be proactive about finding company.
"One of the problems widowers often have is the lack of support and one of the reasons is that very often the wife, historically, is the keeper of the kids," said Doka.
"She's the one that called the kids up and said they should come over for dinner, so it's not unusual that widowers will often say no one ever stops over any more, because they didn't realize someone else was calling and inviting them," he said. REUTERS
Grieving widow or widower should not be neglected especially Windows, an act of love, care and kindness contribute to their life span, family members should give them the necessary support needed to cope with their bereavement.
Losing a husband or wife is a devastating experience that many of us will have to face. About 40 percent of women and 13 percent of men who are 65 and older are widowed, according to latest census figures. Until recently, very little sound research existed about how we live on after a loved one has died. But in the past decade, social scientists with unprecedented access to large groups of widows and widowers have uncovered five surprising truths about losing a spouse.
UNDERSTANDING THE GRIEVING PERIOD
GRIEVING SPOUSE OSCILLATE:- For years, we’ve been told that grief comes in five stages: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. If we were to diagram those stages, the emotional trajectory would look something like a large capital W, with two major low points signifying anger or depression, and the top of the last upward leg of the W signifying acceptance. But when psychologist Toni Bisconti of the University of Akron asked recent widows to fill out daily questionnaires for three months, vast fluctuations occurred from one day to the next. A widow might feel anxious and blue one day, only to feel lighthearted and cheerful the next. In other words, we don’t grieve in stages at all, but oscillate rapidly. Over time, those swings diminish in both frequency and intensity until we reach a level of emotional adjustment..
GRIEVING DOES NOT LAST FOR ETERNITY:- One of the most important new findings has shown that for most of us, grief is a severe — but self-limiting — condition, not a permanent state. In one study of older men and women who had lost spouses, George A. Bonanno, a clinical psychologist at Teachers College, Columbia University, found that the core symptoms of grief — anxiety, depression, shock, intrusive thoughts — had lifted by six months after the loss for 50 percent of the participants. Smaller groups took up to 18 months or three years to resume normal functioning. Loss is forever, but thankfully, acute grief is not.
GRIEVING AFFECT MEN MORE:- For years, clinicians have been operating under the assumption that women grieve harder and longer than men. In 2001, psychologists Wolfgang and Margaret Stroebe (a husband-and-wife team) decided to examine all the existing research and came to the surprising conclusion that, after taking into account the higher rate of depression in the overall female population, men actually suffer more from being bereaved. We might be under the impression that widows despair more, but that’s because there are many more widows to observe.
MEN MORE LIKELY TO DIE AFTER THE DEATH OF THEIR WIVES
Men were found to be a third more likely to die after being recently widowed, compared with their normal risk of mortality.
Women, on the other hand, had no increased chance of dying after their husbands passed away, with researchers suggesting they are likely to be more independent and prepared.
Professor Javier Espinosa, who led the study at the Rochester Institute of Technology in America, said: "When a wife dies, men are often unprepared.
"They have often lost their caregiver, someone who cares for them physically and emotionally, and the loss directly impacts the husband's health.
"This same mechanism is likely weaker for most women when a husband dies.
"Therefore, the connection in mortalities for wives may be a reflection of how similar mates' lives become over time.
He found men who are grieving after their wife's death experience a 30 per cent increase in mortality. For women, there is no increased chance of dying due to the loss of their husband.
WOMEN MORE LIKELY TO DIE AFTER THE DEATH OF THEIR CHILD
The team also conducted research into maternal mortality, compiling results from more than 69,000 mothers aged between 20 and 50 over nine years.
He found that the impact on mother mortality is strongest in the two years immediately following the child's death, with grieving mothers three times more likely to die.
According to Prof Espinosa's results the chances of a mother dying increases as much as 133% after they lose a child.
Prof Espinosa, an expert in health and labour economics, said: "To my knowledge, this is the first study to empirically analyse this issue with a large, nationally represented US data set.
"The evidence of a heightened mortality rate for the mother, particularly in the first two years of the child's passing, is especially relevant to public health policy and the timing of interventions that aim to improve the adverse health outcomes mothers experience after the death of a child."
SURVIVING SPOUSE FACES HIGHER RISK OF DYING AFTER THE DEATH OF THEIR MATE
When a husband or wife dies, the surviving spouse faces a higher risk of dying over the next few months as well, according to a new report.
So both men and women face a higher risk of dying in the months after their spouse dies, research suggests. Scientists aren't sure if it's a 'grief-related mechanism,' or if the surviving spouse neglects their own health while their partner is sick.
Previous studies have looked at the so-called widowhood effect. But it wasn't completely clear how long the effect lasts.
"The widowhood question is interesting because it is ubiquitous. At some point or the other one partner will die leaving the other and this will happen to everyone regardless of class, caste, socioeconomic status," Dr. S. V. Subramanian told Reuters Health in an email. He worked on the study at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston.
Researchers still don't know what exactly causes the widowhood effect.
"It's possible it's a grief-related mechanism, or that providing care for the sick spouse causes illness in the surviving spouse, or that, as one's spouse gets sicker, the surviving spouse stops taking care of their own health," Subramanian said.
For the new analysis, the researchers looked at data from the University of Michigan Health and Retirement Study, which surveys more than 26,000 Americans over age 50 every two years.
They focused on 12,316 of the participants who were married in 1998. Subramanian and his colleagues followed those people through 2008 to determine which participants became widows or widowers, then recorded when they died.
There were 2,912 deaths during the study period. Of those, 2,373 were among married people who left a widow or widower behind. The other 539 deaths were among people who had become widows and widowers themselves.
Fifty of those people died within three months of losing their spouse, 26 died between three and six months later and 44 died between six and 12 months later.
Widows and widowers were more likely to die than people whose spouses were still living, on average. The effect was strongest during the first three months after a spouse's death, when they had a 66-percent increased chance of dying.
Because this study only looked at people over age 50, it isn't clear whether younger people would face the same risks after a spouse's death. But Subramanian said some evidence suggests the widowhood effect is actually stronger among younger people.
Family and friends can help a surviving spouse by being supportive and attentive, researchers said.
BROKEN HEART SYNDROME AFTER THE DEATH OF A SPOUSE AFFECT YOUNGER COUPLES MORE
Dr Subramanian said some evidence suggests the widowhood effect is actually stronger among younger people.
Last year, Marcus Ringrose, the grieving husband of Doctor Who actress Mary Tamm, died the day after her funeral.
Miss Tamm had died from cancer two weeks previously and he had given a ‘stunning’ 20-minute eulogy at her funeral.
But by the next morning, he was dead - of a broken heart.
An inquest heard that Mr Ringrose, 59, who was otherwise fit and well, had died of Sudden Adult Death Syndrome, a cardiac condition which can be triggered by emotional stress.
In the U.S., a Minnesota couple who were 'hopelessly in love' for all 65 years of their marriage, died within hours of each other, it was reported earlier this year.
Clifford and Eva Vevea spent their last few days together holding hands at their care home where they were staying.
Nurses at the home put their beds pushed their beds together so they could be together and Clifford aged 93 and Eva aged 90, passed away exactly the same way on the same day.
Local funeral director, Jim Bredman, referred to the close death of spouses as 'the anniversary syndrome' but said in most cases it occurs within a year or so.
SUPPORT AND CARE FOR THE GRIEVING SPOUSE
"What insulates people from grief and stress is a good sense of support. Be around for this person," Dr. Ken Doka told Reuters Health. He is a gerontologist at the Graduate School of The College of New Rochelle in New York and a senior consultant to the Hospice Foundation of America.
"Grief is extraordinarily stressful and when you're older and frailer it's harder to cope with stress," Doka, who wasn't involved in the new study, said.
The loss of a loved one might make for drastic changes in lifestyle habits. Doka advises friends and family to keep an eye on the surviving spouse to see how the person is handling those changes.
"Maybe they used to go for a walk every night but now they're not doing that anymore. Maybe they're not sleeping well, or maybe not taking their medications," said Doka. It helps to be there for them and to be supportive.
Spirituality and religion may also help some people get through a crisis, he said.
Doka said surviving male spouses may feel especially lonely because they don't know they need to be proactive about finding company.
"One of the problems widowers often have is the lack of support and one of the reasons is that very often the wife, historically, is the keeper of the kids," said Doka.
"She's the one that called the kids up and said they should come over for dinner, so it's not unusual that widowers will often say no one ever stops over any more, because they didn't realize someone else was calling and inviting them," he said. REUTERS
Grieving widow or widower should not be neglected especially Windows, an act of love, care and kindness contribute to their life span, family members should give them the necessary support needed to cope with their bereavement.
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