Families Bereaved by Alcohol or Drugs: Research on Experiences, Coping and Support

211 Pages·2018·2 MB·English

by  Christine Valentine (ed.)

‘Surviving a death related to drug or alcohol abuse can be a particularly tragic
experience. This book uniquely deals with the process of bereavement in these
special circumstances, and unveils a world still unknown to many.’
—Professor Diego De Leo AO, DSc, Director, Australian Institute for Suicide
Research and Prevention, Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia
‘Any society that claims to be a caring one should recognise and respond com-
passionately to the doubly painful bereavement experiences that this group of
researchers discuss. The story they tell is a moving one, but it is not always reassur-
ing. It seems that we have been ignoring what is in fact a common problem – losing
a loved one who had an alcohol or drug problem – and that those of us who meet
such bereaved family members have not always been as caring as we should have
been. There are important lessons to be learned here.’
—Jim Orford, Emeritus Professor of Clinical and Community Psychology,
University of Birmingham, Birmingham, England

Families Bereaved by Alcohol
or Drugs
Individuals bereaved by the drug- or alcohol-related death of a family member
represent a sizeable group worldwide. Families Bereaved by Alcohol or Drugs is
the long-awaited result of an important and ambitious research project into
the experiences commonly encountered by members of this stigmatised and
vulnerable group.
Based on focus groups with the practitioners and service personnel who
support grieving relatives following the loss of a loved one to alcohol or drugs,
as well as interviews with the largest qualitative sample of adults bereaved by
substance use that has been reported to date, this much-needed contribution
to research on addiction and bereavement identifies four major reasons why
grief following this tragic kind of death is particularly difficult. By examining
the experiences of a wide range of stakeholders, including practitioners and
policymakers in health, social care and the criminal justice system, the research
contained within this book underscores the large number of organizations that
play a role in the implementation of official procedure following a drug- or
alcohol-related death and identifies significant gaps in the system that bereaved
individuals must negotiate.
Grounded in extensive and rigorous academic research, Families Bereaved by
Alcohol or Drugs is essential reading for academics, researchers and postgradu-
ate students in the fields of mental health and addiction, social work and social
studies, psychology, family studies and bereavement. The book should also be of
interest to anyone with a professional interest in bereavement or substance use.
Dr Christine Valentine is a Research Fellow and member of the Centre for
Death and Society at the University of Bath. She is a founding member of the
Association for the Study of Death and Society. Christine has published widely
on the social and cultural shaping of bereavement in Britain and Japan, on
funeral welfare systems for people on low income both nationally and interna-
tionally, and on funeral directing in the 21st century. She was the lead researcher
for the ESRC-funded research on which the present book is based.
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Families Bereaved by Alcohol or Drugs
Research on Experiences, Coping and Support
Edited by Christine Valentine
Families Bereaved by Alcohol
or Drugs
Research on Experiences, Coping
and Support
Edited by
Christine Valentine
First published 2018
by Routledge
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and by Routledge
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Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2018 selection and editorial matter, Christine Valentine;
individual chapters, the contributors
The right of the editor to be identified as the author of the
editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters,
has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted
or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic,
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including photocopying and recording, or in any information
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or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and
explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British
Library
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A catalog record for this book has been requested
ISBN: 978-1-138-94708-5 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-67029-4 (ebk)
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We dedicate this book to Joan Hollywood, a member of
the research team that carried out the research on which
this book is based. Joan was the inspiration behind this first
major qualitative research project to better understand
and improve support for adults bereaved after a substance-
related death; without her, the project would never have
happened. Following her son’s death in 2008 from drug
and alcohol use, being unable to find support for grieving
a substance-related death, Joan, with her husband, Paul,
founded the support organisation, Bereavement Through
Addiction (BTA), in Bristol. Since 2012 BTA has provided
a helpline, support groups and an annual memorial service
for others bereaved in this way, as well as training to other
organisations. Joan became a tireless campaigner for people
bereaved by substance use. Through BTA she developed an
extensive network of bereaved people and practitioners
involved with drug and alcohol treatment, related deaths
and bereavement support. Joan died on March 10, 2015,
before the project was completed.

Contents
List of figures and tables xi
Foreword xii
WILLIAM FEIGELMAN, PHD
Contributors xvi
Introduction 1
CHRISTINE VALENTINE AND LINDA BAULD
PART I
Coping 13
1 Families living with and bereaved by substance use 17
LORNA TEMPLETON AND RICHARD VELLEMAN
2 The impact of a substance-related death 43
ALLISON FORD, JENNIFER MCKELL, LORNA TEMPLETON AND
CHRISTINE VALENTINE
3 Managing stigma 67
TONY WALTER AND ALLISON FORD
4 Remembering a life that involved substance use 90
CHRISTINE VALENTINE AND LORNA TEMPLETON
5 The diversity of bereavement through substance use 112
LORNA TEMPLETON, JENNIFER MCKELL, RICHARD VELLEMAN AND
GORDON HAY