A Walk With Grief: A Personal Narrative of Coping With the Death of a Same Sex Partner in Late Life.

Résumé

Grief is a complex and multifaceted process. While there is no reason to think that the grieving process would be dissimilar if an LGBTQ+ individual loses a partner than the grief of a heterosexual individual, they often receive and perceive less practical and emotional support, empathy and are treated unequally legally post loss. To date no studies have investigated whether this experience (disenfranchised loss) more likely leads to prolonged grief disorder or other mental health sequelae. This article describes aspects of disenfranchised grief, loneliness, and artificial intelligence for emotional support based on the personal experience of an older gay widower who was moderately depressed and lonely at the time of enrollment in a clinical trial for late-life bereavement and suicide risk.