Disenfranchised grief
There are many models for dealing with grief. The Kubler-Ross model describes grieving in five steps or stages: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance (Kubler-Ross, 1969). In other words, in order to begin grieving one must first endorse the loss, and then express emotion. The griever must then accept the loss and adjust to the change the death or loss caused in his or her life (Cordaro, 2012). Over the years, however, how grief is conceptualised has moved away from predictable stages that lead to 'recovery' or 'closure', towards an understanding of grief that addresses the complexity and diversity of the grieving experience (Australian Psychological Society, 2016). Models such as Worden's tasks of grief (2008) and the Dual-Process model (Stroebe and Schutt,1999) offer frameworks for dealing with grief in a way that enhances the self awareness of the grieving person (Australian Psychological Society, 2016).
Miscarriage and grief
Rituals that recognize the loss can be important in coping. Family and friends often conduct a memorial or burial service. Hospitals also can provide support and help memorialize the event. Depending on locale others desire to have a private ceremony. The religious faith of the woman and family impacts the grief process. Conversely, the lack of recognition that the miscarriage has occurred by family and friends can be troubling and add to the trauma of the event.
Grieving after the loss of a child through miscarriage in other cultures can vary from western culture. An individual’s culture plays a large role in determining an inappropriate pattern of grief, and it is appropriate to take into account cultural norms before reaching a complicated grief diagnosis. There are cultural differences in emotional levels, how these are expressed and how long they are expressed. External symptoms of grief differ in non-Western cultures, presenting increased somatization. Narratives by Swedish women include their own perception of losing a child. Investigations describe their grief over their miscarriage: "When miscarriage occurs it is not a gore, an embryo, or a fetus they lose, it is their child. They feel that they are the cause of the miscarriage through something they have done, eaten, or thought. They feel abandonment and they grieve for their profound loss; they are actually in bereavement." Native American women have cut their long hair following the death of a family member. The narratives of women tend to coincide with quantified and measurable effects. In women who are induced to have an abortion, an identical grieving process can occur. The emotional responses to a spontaneous abortion (miscarriage) and an elective abortion are sometimes identical. Spanish women experience grief in much the same way in the rest of Western culture. Some women find online forums helpful.