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The Myth of Closure

Ambiguous Loss in a Time of Pandemic and Change
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( 512 ratings, 76 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
In The Myth of Closure by Pauline Boss, the author explores the concept of ambiguous loss and our societal obsession with finding closure. Through philosophical and psychological insights, Boss challenges the notion that healing requires closure, offering pathways to cope with loss without definitive endings.
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Format: Hardback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book may appeal to you if you're intrigued by emotional resilience and the human capacity to cope with unresolved grief. Drawing on philosophical and psychological insights, it explores the complexities of loss and the unrealistic expectation of achieving closure, offering a compassionate outlook on living with ambiguity.

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How do we begin to cope with loss that cannot be resolved?

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

The COVID-19 pandemic has left many of us haunted by feelings of anxiety, despair, and even anger. In this book, pioneering therapist Pauline Boss identifies these vague feelings of distress as caused by ambiguous loss—losses that remain unclear and hard to pin down, and thus have no closure. Collectively, the world is grieving as the pandemic continues to change our everyday lives.

With a loss of trust in the world as a safe place, a loss of certainty about health care, education, and employment, lingering anxieties plague many of us, even as parts of the world are opening back up again. Yet after so much loss, our search must be for a sense of meaning, and not something as elusive and impossible as closure.

The Myth of Closure provides many strategies for coping: encouraging us to increase our tolerance of ambiguity and acknowledging our resilience as we express a normal grief, and still look to the future with hope and possibility.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The Myth of Closure by Pauline Boss offers insights into dealing with loss and uncertainty, especially in the context of the pandemic. This book emphasises the importance of adapting and creating meaning in the present and future rather than longing for the past. It is filled with compassionate observations and stories, making it a valuable resource for those grappling with the aftermath of recent global events.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781324016816

Publisher: WW Norton & Co

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 15 February 2022

Country: United States

Imprint: WW Norton & Co

Audience: Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 20.0mm

Width: 147.0mm

Height: 218.0mm

Weight: 375g

Pages: 192

About the Author

Pauline Boss, PhD, is emeritus professor at University of Minnesota. She is known worldwide for developing the theory of ambiguous loss and as a pioneer in the interdisciplinary study of family stress management. Dr. Boss is the author of Loss, Trauma, and Resilience: Therapeutic Work with Ambiguous Loss and The Myth of Closure: Ambiguous Loss in a Time of Pandemic and Change. She lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

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