Inhibition of mourning by pregnancy: psychopathology and management

Abstract

A bereavement during pregnancy is difficult to mourn: a pregnant woman is so increasingly preoccupied with the new life that mourning is interrupted and often impossible to resume later. This may lead to idealisation of the child as a reincarnation of the dead person or child abuse. A bereaved woman should be helped to mourn at the time of death and to keep alive the expectation of future mourning once her baby is thriving.