Xavier Professors Researching Prolonged Grief Seek Help Loss is
a common experience among older adults, and for most of them,
grief resolves over time. However, an estimated 10 percent of
older adults experience what is known as complicated grief: an
intense and long-lasting grief that disrupts relationships and
makes it difficult to function effectively or even to care about
functioning. Complicated grief can lead to poorer physical and
mental health including suicide. The elderly represent 12
percent of the population yet make up 20 percent of all suicides
in the U.S. It is important to identify and treat complicated
grief. Psychotropic medications and standard grief-focused
supportive psychotherapies appear to have little impact on this
intense grief. As part of their research into effective
treatments, Xavier University assistant professor Nick Salsman,
PhD and associate professor John Barrett, PhD are studying a
method which has been proven effective in dealing with
depression and suicidal thoughts. To t