Grief is a universal reaction experienced by all of us at some point in our lives. The capacity that makes each of us capable of maintaining warm and satisfying relationships also makes us vulnerable to sadness, despair, and grief when these relationships are disrupted (Carr, 1969). Regardless of the actual relationship that may have existed before the death, we tend to idealize the relationship after the death has occurred and expect expressions of normal grief. Unfortunately, “normal grieving” is what society expects, but the needs of the individual determine grieving. Because society influences our behavior through the secondary reinforcement of social approval during this time, we do not look at the primary reinforcer of survival. The needs of each individual can only be understood in light of knowledge of their own developmental context and the particular conflicts mobilized, as well as the defenses used against them (Maddison and Raphael, 1972). important in another aspect of death called anticipatory grief. The term anticipatory grief was first used by Lindemann in 1944 to "...denote a reaction to separation and the possibility of death rather than the inevitability of death" (Bourke, 1984). Over the years, there has been much discussion and research on anticipatory grief, but to date the evidence is inconsistent and all research indicates that the anticipated losses the individual faces are very real. "Their emotional investment in the presence of the individual, the satisfactions and warmth they have received through their attachment to him, will soon end" (Kalish, 1977). Since Lindemann (...... middle of article . ..... management of acute grief. American Journal of Psychiatry, 101, 141-148. Maddison, DC & Raphael, B. (1972). In B . Schoenberg, A. Carr, A. Kutscher, D. Peretz and I. Goldberg, (Eds.), Psychosocial aspects of terminal care (pp. 185-200): Columbia Univ. . with a senile parent. Social Casework: The Journal of Contemporary Social Work, 67, 490-498. Osterweis, M., Solomon, F. and Green, M. (1984: Reactions, consequences and care, DC: National). Academy Press. Rando, TA (1988). Anticipatory grief: the term is a misnomer but the phenomenon exists, 4, 70-73. death (12-15 Phoenix: The Oryx press)..