Episode
The Sunday Read: ‘What if There’s No Such Thing as Closure?’
36:35
Published: Sun Jan 09 2022
Description
In her new book, “The Myth of Closure: Ambiguous Loss in a Time of Pandemic and Change,” Pauline Boss considers what it means to reach “emotional closure” in a state of unnamable grief.Hard to define, these grievances have been granted a new name: ambiguous loss. The death of a loved one, missing relatives, giving a child up for adoption, a lost friend — Boss teases out how one can mourn something that cannot always be described.The pandemic has been rife with “ambiguous loss,” Boss argues. Milestones missed; friendships and romantic liaisons cooled; families prevented from bidding farewell to dying loved ones because of stringent hospital rules. A sense of “frozen grief” pervades great swathes of the global community. Boss believes that by rethinking and lending language to the nature of loss, we might get closer to understanding it.This story was recorded by Audm. To hear more audio stories from publications like The New York Times, download Audm for iPhone or Android.
Chapters
The term ambiguous loss describes the feeling of grief and emotional distress that arises from losing someone who is physically present but psychologically or emotionally absent.
00:00 - 03:19 (03:19)
Summary
The term ambiguous loss describes the feeling of grief and emotional distress that arises from losing someone who is physically present but psychologically or emotionally absent. This podcast episode focuses on the ways in which individuals and families can cope with the confusion, anxiety and pain caused by ambiguous loss.
EpisodeThe Sunday Read: ‘What if There’s No Such Thing as Closure?’
PodcastThe Daily
Pauline Boss, an emeritus professor of family social science, has released a book titled The Myth of Closure, Ambiguous Loss in a Time of Pandemic and Change, in which she discusses helping people cope with grief over things like missing bodies or divorces.
03:19 - 15:52 (12:33)
Summary
Pauline Boss, an emeritus professor of family social science, has released a book titled The Myth of Closure, Ambiguous Loss in a Time of Pandemic and Change, in which she discusses helping people cope with grief over things like missing bodies or divorces. Her research has broadened her attention from family and societal bereavement and beyond.
EpisodeThe Sunday Read: ‘What if There’s No Such Thing as Closure?’
PodcastThe Daily
In her book "The Myth of Closure," Dr. Pauline Boss offers six guidelines to help individuals cope with ambiguous loss and make meaning out of loss, including accepting ambivalence and redefining one's relationship with the loss.
15:52 - 25:36 (09:43)
Summary
In her book "The Myth of Closure," Dr. Pauline Boss offers six guidelines to help individuals cope with ambiguous loss and make meaning out of loss, including accepting ambivalence and redefining one's relationship with the loss. The book draws on Boss's decades-long research and counseling experience, as well as her own personal reflections on love and loss.
EpisodeThe Sunday Read: ‘What if There’s No Such Thing as Closure?’
PodcastThe Daily
The theory of ambiguous loss, developed by family therapist and psychologist Pauline Boss, is being applied to explain how racism can cause loss and trauma in black families and communities, with its effects still felt in present-day systems of oppression.
25:36 - 35:21 (09:44)
Summary
The theory of ambiguous loss, developed by family therapist and psychologist Pauline Boss, is being applied to explain how racism can cause loss and trauma in black families and communities, with its effects still felt in present-day systems of oppression. Boss has received recent inquiries about the theory's application to racism as a form of ambiguous loss.
EpisodeThe Sunday Read: ‘What if There’s No Such Thing as Closure?’
PodcastThe Daily
The speaker relates a story about a woman who refused to leave her husband's side in the hospital after he suffered a stroke, despite her daughter suggesting she go home and rest.
35:21 - 36:14 (00:52)
Summary
The speaker relates a story about a woman who refused to leave her husband's side in the hospital after he suffered a stroke, despite her daughter suggesting she go home and rest.