Bittersweet encounters. A qualitative exploration of parents’ unexplainable grief experiences after child loss

When a loved one dies, some grievers report experiencing phenomena for which no rational explanation seems to exist. This qualitative study, based on a secondary analysis of interview data, aimed to contribute to a deeper understanding of the value and meaning of unexplainable grief experiences for 23 parents who lost a child to cancer and to integrate these insights into bereavement support. Many cancer-bereaved parents had a variety of unexplainable experiences, and none of them gave the impression that they had to hide or suppress these experiences because of perceived stigma. Although these experiences, as a form of continuing bonds, seemed to alleviate the grieving process, their impact on bereaved parents was often bittersweet. To improve grief support to bereaved families, healthcare practitioners should be aware of how the need or desire for such unexplainable experiences interacts with parents' concerns about how to sustain their child's memory.