What we know about teenagers and grief
As all adults will know or remember, our teenage years are a period of immense physical, biological, psychological and emotional change. When somebody close to a teenager dies, it can feel difficult for them to find a way through their grief whilst also managing to cope with the day-to-day unpredictability of these physical and emotional changes. Adults supporting adolescents through a bereavement – often whilst coping with their own grief – may feel concerned, confused or even frustrated by their reactions.
At SeeSaw we believe that, just as dying is a natural part of living, all grief reactions too are natural and normal responses to grief. As parents, we are predisposed to try to protect our children. We often want to fix their problems, to take away their pain and to help them to move on. With grief, we cannot do this.