When military personnel came up with ideas for linking computers so that they could 'talk' to each other they may not have had grief support online in mind. They might also not have realized that they had a tiger by the tail and that their invention would have the effect of a magical transformation of the world. When the social implications of the development dawned it became blindingly obvious that the Internet would have repercussions very far beyond the sending of military messages.
People, their personal interests and gossip shouldered their way forward like the Wife of Bath, eagerly spreading themselves on the alter of publicity. Privacy boundaries and taboos were sent scattering in a world increasingly shaped by electronic communication channels. It is not only grief, but also matters such as romance, travel and religion that hum like electric currents through the now wired world.
Communication is a process in which messages are exchanged between senders and receivers through various channels. As feedback is given there is interference and the generation of new messages. As the Internet developed the nature of interference altered. What had been private and intimate become public. Relationship across continents became common as people exchanged information in the form of images, sounds and symbols.
In some cultures grief is shared openly and socially. People commonly collapse at funerals wailing and weeping as family members gather around in support. They seem to wish to share their grief socially by demonstrating emotions. In other cultures people dressed in black gather stiffly around open graves holding back tears and hiding their faces.
Grief is deeper and may be more long lasting than sorrow. Usually a person is stricken with emotion and unable to function normally as a result of the deep disturbance that incapacitates either temporarily or in some cases for long periods. An English queen wore black, never remarried and grieved publicly for many years after the death of her husband. Others mourn privately and that may be more difficult to bear.
The task of supporting grieving people often falls to close friends or relatives. This can have advantages or disadvantages. Conscientious friends can become cloying and irksome if the talk too much and begin to intrude on a person's grief. A person who is tactful and empathetic and who perhaps grieves for the same cause can be a great support however, especially if the shared emotion of sorrow somehow lessens the load.
Counselors can learn to listen and this is usually accepted as the best kind of help. It helps a victim who might be bottling up dangerous emotions towards catharsis. Ironically, a sympathetic listener has to concentrate hard and talk tactfully and skillfully at just the right moment. Counselors who sit complacently waiting for their subject to unburden herself can become objects of hatred simply because they are thinking how professionally astute they are instead of engaging in genuine empathy.
Grief support online does not allow for physical contact such as hugging and kissing and this might be a disadvantage in some instances. However, such spontaneous contact is often of temporary help. At deeper and more ongoing levels it can become cloying. What is needed at the longer term level is a mix of empathy and understanding. The online communication process is actually conducive to that.
People, their personal interests and gossip shouldered their way forward like the Wife of Bath, eagerly spreading themselves on the alter of publicity. Privacy boundaries and taboos were sent scattering in a world increasingly shaped by electronic communication channels. It is not only grief, but also matters such as romance, travel and religion that hum like electric currents through the now wired world.
Communication is a process in which messages are exchanged between senders and receivers through various channels. As feedback is given there is interference and the generation of new messages. As the Internet developed the nature of interference altered. What had been private and intimate become public. Relationship across continents became common as people exchanged information in the form of images, sounds and symbols.
In some cultures grief is shared openly and socially. People commonly collapse at funerals wailing and weeping as family members gather around in support. They seem to wish to share their grief socially by demonstrating emotions. In other cultures people dressed in black gather stiffly around open graves holding back tears and hiding their faces.
Grief is deeper and may be more long lasting than sorrow. Usually a person is stricken with emotion and unable to function normally as a result of the deep disturbance that incapacitates either temporarily or in some cases for long periods. An English queen wore black, never remarried and grieved publicly for many years after the death of her husband. Others mourn privately and that may be more difficult to bear.
The task of supporting grieving people often falls to close friends or relatives. This can have advantages or disadvantages. Conscientious friends can become cloying and irksome if the talk too much and begin to intrude on a person's grief. A person who is tactful and empathetic and who perhaps grieves for the same cause can be a great support however, especially if the shared emotion of sorrow somehow lessens the load.
Counselors can learn to listen and this is usually accepted as the best kind of help. It helps a victim who might be bottling up dangerous emotions towards catharsis. Ironically, a sympathetic listener has to concentrate hard and talk tactfully and skillfully at just the right moment. Counselors who sit complacently waiting for their subject to unburden herself can become objects of hatred simply because they are thinking how professionally astute they are instead of engaging in genuine empathy.
Grief support online does not allow for physical contact such as hugging and kissing and this might be a disadvantage in some instances. However, such spontaneous contact is often of temporary help. At deeper and more ongoing levels it can become cloying. What is needed at the longer term level is a mix of empathy and understanding. The online communication process is actually conducive to that.
