ABSTRACT
We indicated in chapter 3 that feelings of both guilt and anger are an essential part of the grieving process. So why introduce them again in this section about complicated grief? We do this not because these feelings are more important than other feelings, nor because they are necessarily the most difficult for the griever or the loss counsellor, but because these feelings are generally experienced as the most powerful. As we mentioned earlier these are the two feelings which people are most likely to fear and repress, and which our society is prone to deny. Thus a collusive secrecy develops between the frightened individual and the denying community which gives particular power to platitudes such as 'Don't speak ill of the dead'. When feelings of guilt and anger are consistently repressed and denied they find expression in very indirect ways and can lead to complications or blocks in the grieving process.
