Grieving Students in Helping Professions

Grieving Students in Helping Professions Bereavement, the overall experience of losing a loved one, is a life transition from which college students are not excluded. In fact, an estimated 33 percent of undergraduate college students are grieving the death of a family member or friend within the past year and almost 50 percent have experienced similar losses within the past two years (Balk, 2011; Balk, Walker, & Baker, 2010; Varga, 2013; Walker, Hathcoat, & Noppe, 2012). Accompanying these losses are a variety of grief effects and lack of support mechanisms on campus (Janowiak, Mei-Tal, & Drapkin, 1995; LaGrand, 1981, 1985). These findings are particularly troubling for human service educators who are preparing future helping professionals. In addition to enduring their own possible bereavement, these students may encounter clients who are grieving a loss themselves. It is important, therefore, that human service educators be able to: (a) understand the importance of student bereavement for those aspiring to become human service professionals; (b) identify bereaved students; (c) implement strategies to more effectively prepare future helping professionals with respect to these topics. Bereaved Students in Helping Professions The importance of helping bereaved college students is well documented (Balk, 2001; Balk, 2011; Smyth, Hockemeyer, Heron, Wonderlich, & Pennebaker, 2008); however, there is still a need to acknowledge bereaved students aspiring to be helping professionals. While grief is a normal reaction to situations such as death, divorce, relocation, or loss of anything important to an individual, it has no timetable. Unresolved grief, also called prolonged, complicated, or chronic grief, can result in intense feelings of anger, emptiness, guilt, sadness, and risk for poor health including obesity, clinical depression, and substance abuse (American Cancer Society, 2013; American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2013; Hardison, Neimeyer, & Lichstein, 2005). In fact, the debilitating effects of prolonged grief prompted its inclusion in the most recent edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) (APA, 2013). Any of these symptoms or combination of symptoms can impair the functioning and judgment of a human service professional, resulting in ineffective services for clients, high turnover for human service agencies and organizations, or both. Explicitly addressing the needs of grieving students is important for their professional preparation, their self-care, and the future clients they will serve. Identifying Bereaved College Students A first step for human service educators is the identification of the bereaved student. Numerous studies have found that grief affects students physically, cognitively, behaviorally, interpersonally, emotionally, and spiritually, and can manifest in various ways (Balk 2011; Beam, Servaty-Seib, & Mathews, 2004; Neimeyer, Laurie, Mehta, Hardison, & Currier, 2008; Servaty-Seib & Hamilton, 2006; Servaty-Seib & Taub, 2010; Walker et al., 2012). Among symptoms are physical (e.g., insomnia); behavioral (e.g., alcohol or drug abuse); interpersonal (e.g., difficulty getting along with others, isolation, and loss of friends); cognitive (e.g., problems with grades as a result of inattention, rumination, or nonattendance); emotional (e.g., intense mood swings); and spiritual (e.g., questioning the purpose of life, religious beliefs, the meaning of one's life, or why good people die). The presence of any one or a combination signals the need for further consideration from an instructor or advisor. Students with unresolved grief issues may experience prolonged grief disorder or persistent complex bereavement disorder (APA, 2013; Balk et al., 2010; Prigerson et al., 2009; Varga, 2013). This is a mental disorder that is a result of the inability to cope with the loss of a loved one after a significant period of time has elapsed since the loss. …