Widower

by Campbell, Scott; Silverman, Phyllis R.

• ISBN13: 9780895032867
• ISBN10: 0895032864
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1996-06-06
• Publisher: Baywood Pub Co

Summary

ABOUT THE BOOK In Widower: When Men are Left Alone, a journalist and a social worker explore the grief process as men experience it. The book contains the oral histories of twenty men, ranging in age from 30 to 94, who have lost their wives to a range of causes including cancer, alcohol, murder, and suicide. Taken together the stories guide the reader through the journey of widowhood, from the raw despair of the early weeks to the resolved perspective thirteen years later, offered by the only true authority on the subject-the men who have survived it. Each story is followed with a psychological analysis of the grieving process as reflected in that man's experience and with practical advice to widowers and to the people around them for coping with the loss. The death of a spouse is one of the most traumatic experience one can have, the touch-stone against which all stressful events are measured. The man who loses his wife has lost more than a spouse-he has often lost a companion, lover, mother, teacher, caretaker, and social connector as well. Statistics show that widowed men are more vulnerable than other men to serious psychological disorders and very real physical problems, which could lead to an earlier death. Campbell and Silverman offer expert analyses of these experiences and point out ways to work through the grieving process. Sound advice for those interested in setting up their own self-help or widower group and a directory of helpful organizations are also provided. Written with refreshing honesty and sensitivity, Widower charts the path to picking up the pieces and building a new life. It is a book about loss, but also a book about love. In its focus on death, it is an inspiring affirmation of life for those who are in the most need of it.