Love and Despair

In the abyss 

I saw how love held bound

Into one volume all the lives whose flight

Is scattered through the universe around;

How substance, accident, and mode unite,

Fused, so to speak, together in such wise

That this I tell is one simple light.

-Dante, from the Divine Comedy

Love, or what Bowlby would call attachment, is a phenomenon unique to humans. Or is it? There is neuroscientific evidence to demonstrate that animals display some type of attachment behaviors, most often observed between mothers and their offspring, in the animal kingdom.

And where there is love, there is grief.

Many animals, from cows to dogs to baboons, exhibit fierce grief responses when separated from their mothers. They first enter a phase of protest, pacing back-and-forth, searching and yearning for the object of their affection.  Some mothers, in response to the separation from their babies, begin self-harming behaviors, such as chewing their own limbs or intentionally injuring themselves.  A puppy separated from his mother will "let out a piteous whine, high-pitched and grating as every aspect of his behavior broadcasts his distress" (Lewis & Amini, 2000).   This behavior is even observed in rats.  

Mammalian protests in the animal kingdom mirror human physiologic responses to loss. During protest,  hearts palpate, catecholamines and cortisol flourish, and the body is on high alert and arousal.  High levels of chronic cortisol, the stress hormone, can compromise the immune system, interrupting important processes for the body. In sum, intense disequilibrium to the homeostatic condition can occur- very dangerous, not just psychologically, but biologically too.

This is the state of despair.  The anchored weight of grief turned inward. Apathy, lack of focus, anhedonism, bleakness...hopeless and helpless...alone in the world.   

If separating animals from their offspring can cause disruption, just imagine- in the human relationship- the depth of emotional responses to such separation. The architecture of attachment is complex, particularly the attachment between a human mother and her child. Woven into the relationship are generations of evolutionary adaptations tailor-suited to accommodate the unique relationship that will require bonding like no other relationship on the planet. What happens when that bond is prematurely broken? Despair. A state of despair.

Yet, human beings also have the capacity to help one another. Studies suggest that connectedness with like others has powerful effects on the brain- mainly, the limbic system- as well as our experiences of loss. Being helped by and helping others is a powerful healer. No, it isn't magic- there is no panacea- no voodoo that can cure a mother's grieving heart. But both social support and social outreach have powerful effects on a person.  

The MISS Foundation  provides a safe place for grieving families in despair.  It's a place to first find help, then later to provide hope to another. Family and friends- communities- should also strive to provide a safety net to help. Something so unspeakable- something so tragic- should never be endured alone.

Just as despair can come to one only from other human beings, 

hope, too, can be given to one only by other human beings.

- Elie Wiesel

The Bionic Woman of Grief

I'm often asked how long it takes before the grief subsides or recovery takes place. The inquisitors are often newly bereaved parents or those who deeply care for them, wishing things to be as they were before the child died.

This came up today on the MISS Foundation forums- our online support groups. Often, in the midst of intense suffering, it is impossible to imagine that this pain will ever end, that life can ever be normal, that the tears will run dry. Some say it is time that heals. Time allows necessary space, a retreat, from that despair of early grief. But I, as usual, see it differently.

My experience, including the most recent emotional upheaval of the past few weeks, has taught me that, for me- and remember that everyone is different, the pain has not weakened. My grief has not been assuaged. I am still grieving deeply, like I was nearly 14 years ago, for my beloved little girl.  

But, I believe that I have become stronger. 

That is Chey's gift to me. She has strengthened me as a woman, mother, friend, and human being. Slowly at first, but over time, my grief muscles, started to build. Like a new work out routine, my muscles hurt at first, burned with pain, objecting to the new weight I had to carry. But over time, I became stronger and stronger, eventually withstanding weight (obstacles, challenges, and other grief) in my life that she helped prepare me to carry. I prefer that way. I become stronger rather than to merely have the grief become weaker. In this algorithm, there is actually gain, not loss. 

I would, of course, give back all my superhuman strength to have her back. But I am more whole and more happy today than I would have been without her in my life.

No, it does not always hurt like this. 

It is not how much time has passed, though, that counts. It's what you do with that time.