Parenting After the Death of a Spouse

The death of a spouse is a complicated experience in a family. Understanding the circumstances of the loss is part of the family’s healing process. The current qualitative phenomenological study builds on the existing studies by focusing on the lived experience of parents as they transition to single parenthood. Six individuals participated in this study. Data analysis revealed 5 themes related to the change to single parenting after the loss of the spouse including the need to revision the parenting role and the role of support. The study has implications for the design of interventions and groups following the death of a spouse. Keywords bereavement, bereaved spouses, parenting and grief, grief and loss The loss of a spouse is a complicated experience in the life of a family. Understanding the circumstances of the loss and the secondary losses that accompany a death is part of the healing process for the entire family. There are a variety of research studies that focus on the impact of a death on a family. Lehman et al1 noted that there are negative individual effects of a death on each member of the family. The