Are Sensory Experiences of One's Deceased Spouse Associated with Bereavement-Related Distress?

Following late-life spousal bereavement, sensory and quasi-sensory experiences of the deceased (SED) are commonly reported. This longitudinal study examined SED among 310 older widowed adults 6-10 (T1) and 18-20 (T2) months post loss. Reports of SED in the first 6-10 months after loss were associated with higher symptom levels of prolonged grief, post-traumatic stress, and loneliness at T1. Experiencers of SED were more likely to experience symptoms of prolonged grief and post-traumatic stress above cut-off scores at T1. Importantly, only a minority of the experiencers of SED displayed these elevated levels of bereavement-related distress. In addition, employing multi-level-modeling, a similar trajectory of decreasing bereavement-related distress over time was found for both experiencers and non-experiencers of SED. We argue that SED may be one of several potential reactions to bereavement, which should not be seen as an indicator of grief complications per se.

Prevalence and Phenomenology of Sensory Experiences of a Deceased Spouse: A Survey of Bereaved Older Adults

Sensory and quasi-sensory experiences of the deceased (SED), also called bereavement hallucinations, are common in bereavement, but research detailing these experiences is limited. Methods: An in-depth survey of SED was developed based on existing research, and 310 older adults from the general Danish population participated in the study 6-10 months after their spouse died. Results: SED were reported by 42% of the participants with wide-ranging phenomenological features across sensory-modalities. In particular, seeing and hearing the deceased spouse was experienced as very similar to the couple's everyday contacts before death. SED were endorsed as positive by a majority of experiencers, and the experiences were often shared with family and friends. Discussion: SED are conceptualized as social and relational phenomena, which may comfort the surviving spouse in late-life bereavement, but also provide tangible help to some experiencers. In clinical practice, SED may be considered a potential resource for the therapeutic grief process.

Sensory and Quasi-Sensory Experiences of the Deceased in Bereavement: An Interdisciplinary and Integrative Review

Bereaved people often report having sensory and quasi-sensory experiences of the deceased (SED), and there is an ongoing debate over whether SED are associated with pathology, such as grief complications. Research into these experiences has been conducted in various disciplines, including psychiatry, psychology, and anthropology, without much crossover. This review brings these areas of research together, drawing on the expertise of an interdisciplinary working group formed as part of the International Consortium for Hallucination Research (ICHR). It examines existing evidence on the phenomenology, associated factors, and impact of SED, including the role of culture, and discusses the main theories on SED and how these phenomena compare with unusual experiences in other contexts. The review concludes that the vast majority of these experiences are benign and that they should be considered in light of their biographical, relational, and sociocultural contexts.