Patterns of grief reaction after pregnancy loss.

Analysis of three waves of Perinatal Grief Scale scores for 194 bereaved subjects over the course of two years revealed patterns of change different from those commonly noted in the literature. Less than half the sample matched the "normal" model; the rest exhibited non-normal patterns that did not fit the alternative psychological models. Demographic variables and pregnancy history, both before and after the loss, help explain some of the differences in direction of the grief response.