The Psychological Loss of a Beloved Family Pet
04 Oct 2021
Who doesn’t love the family pet? And what happens when one is lost? Psychiatrists at the Harvard Medical School report the loss can trigger a prolonged and profound sense of grief, especially in children. They add, “the strong emotional attachment of youngsters to pets might result in measurable psychological distress that can serve as an indicator of depression in children and adolescents for as long as three years or more.” Researchers also learned that the relationship between pet death and increased distress was more pronounced in male than female children regardless of socioeconomic status or previous hardships. If you know a child experiencing complicated grief from the loss of a pet, it helps if they have someone to talk to who can sympathize.
