Lesbians Grieving the Death of a Partner: Recommendations for Practice

ABSTRACT

Spousal loss is a common event that has been associated with risk of depression, anxiety, and loneliness. Practitioners working with lesbians need comprehensive clinical guidelines that integrate research about lesbian partner loss with contemporary views of grief and bereavement. Using this literature, we make recommendations for clinical practice that address the possible contributions of several factors—social support, emotional closeness, relationship satisfaction, disclosure or non-disclosure of sexual identity and the relationship, faith and/or spirituality, and meaning-making—to the grieving process and positive psychological adjustment of lesbians grieving the death of a partner.

KEYWORDS:

• Lesbian couples
• bereavement
• spousal grief
• grief counseling

Acknowledgments

Debra Broderick received her doctorate in Counseling Psychology from the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis, where she works in their Office of Personal Counseling and Testing. Dr. Broderick also has a private practice in St. Paul, MN. She and Michael Steger received a 2007 APF Investigator Development grant to conduct further research on this topic, based on her dissertation research.

Jean Birbilis, Ph.D., L.P., is a member of the faculty at the University of St. Thomas, where she has taught in the Graduate School of Professional Psychology for the past 17 years. She is also an independent practitioner, where she focuses on the treatment of chronic pain and illness, and on life transitions such as divorce and employment changes.

Michael Steger received his Ph.D. in Counseling and Personality Psychology from the University of Minnesota in 2005. He is currently at the Colorado State University. His research focuses on how people generate the sense that their lives are meaningful, on intimacy building in romantic relationships, and on the role of meaning in stress and coping.