ABSTRACT
Parent narratives dealt extensively with the marital relationship. Most narratives referred to a fact that marital relationships are very difficult following a child's death and that many couples who have experienced the death of a child divorce. Developing a narrative about divorce or emotional distance might be a route to divorce. The literature on parent grief says if partners differ in mutual support it is typically the man who is less available emotionally. Some narratives spoke of a break in sexual intercourse because of depression, emotional fragility, emotional emptiness, emotional distancing related to the loss and grieving, or a low level of physical or emotional energy. In the narratives, valuable ingredients for getting along and staying together included an acceptance of partner differences and a willingness to do things without the spouse. In many narratives there was a sense of the death creating a new bond in the couple at the same time that it pushed them apart.
