ABSTRACT
Writing of her practice with bereaved people, Haugh (in press) states that in person-centred terms, the purpose of grieving is to enable a bereaved person to integrate their loss into their lives in whatever way is right for them. This presents a challenge to all person-centred practitioners to be open and accepting of all ways in which a person responds to their loss and to hold theory so lightly that no client is ever forced into a theoretical box. For although responses to loss can be generalised to some extent, each person is unique, with a unique past, present and future, with unique con®gurations of self and unique conditions of worth. In the climate of the necessary and suf®cient conditions, the bereaved client's actualising tendency will prompt them to growth, healing and resolution as and when these are appropriate for them. In other words, clients can be trusted to discover those aspects of themselves that are causing anguish and therapists can trust their movement towards health.
