This paper deals with subjective experience of mourning. The major trauma of bereavement is seen in the cessation of vital interaction. If the lost partner is recognized as dead the now painful attachment cannot, like a painful tie to a living partner, be resolved by the process of disappointment. Neither can frustration be alleviated by identification with the partner's current state. Adaptation that facilitated optimal interaction prior to bereavement has now become a liability. Further reasons why successful mourning may require far reaching reorientation and reintegration of personality are discussed.
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