The Psychosocial Impact of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome on Siblings

Siblings’ reaction to death and parental management of sibling grief was assessed as part of a study on the psychosocial impact of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) on the family. Out of an initial probability sample of 40 families, 28 had children older than the SIDS victim, comprising a study sample of 28 mothers, 23 fathers and 78 siblings. A retrospective assessment of parents’ perceptions of their surviving children's responses to SIDS and how parents coped with this, showed a peak representation of behavioural upset during the first three months of bereavement in the majority (82%) of families. A combination of symptoms, such as seeking parental affection or attention, separation anxiety and fear of being alone, as well as incessant curiosity about the death, remained unresolved for half of these families at a mean interim of 2.9 years of the loss. Despite a high representation of symptomatic behaviour, and general parental difficulty in facilitating siblings' grief, few of families sought or were offered health professional support in coping with their bereaved children. The data in this study suggest a direction for change. Professional counselling aimed at reducing the risk of adverse psychosocial consequences is recommended immediately following a SID in the family, to enable bereaved parents to recognise, understand and respond to their children's grief reactions.