Losing a spouse when you are old can be devastating. A small group of widows and widowers, 10-15% of the total amount of older people left behind, are suffering particularly badly. They are physically, mentally and socially impaired after losing their spouses, and can be said to have a complicated reaction of grief.

Researchers have come so far as to identify a particular psychological syndrome which may occur following the death of a loved one. The name of the syndrome is Prolonged Grief Disorder (PGD) – or VSL in Danish. Well-known disorders such as anxiety, depression or PTSD triggered by a loss do not include VSL. It is an independent psychopathological phenomenon. Without treatment, a complete diagnosis of VSL and an increased level of VSL symptoms are – on a broader scale – related to deteriorations in health, functioning and quality of life.

Currently, there are no evidence-based treatment manuals dealing with PGD/VSL available. Consequently, Maja O’Connor and Christina Schlander, Department of Psychology, Aarhus University, Denmark (Enhed for Psykoonkologi og Sundhedspsykologi) have initiated a development project that will generate knowledge in order to address unnecessary mental distress, loneliness and social marginalization among elderly bereaved. Another purpose is to make evidence-based methods of VSL treatment available to professionals dealing with the target group.