How to Increase Tolerance of Children Facing the Death of a Family Member

The major aim of the present article is to point out the problems that may occur in the family following the demise of one of its members especially the negative consequences for the children. In addition, some practical solutions to mitigate the negative effects of such events on children have been offered. The worst incident for a child happens when one of his/her family member passes away. Feeling the deep sorrow of losing a beloved family member besides the ambiguity of the nature of death and its reason may lead most such children to suffer deep depression and anxiety or even cause them to commit suicide. The concept of death is a mysterious and ambiguous theme which cannot be comprehended by children and parents are not able to clarify it for them either. Death of a family member can be predictable or accidental and unpredictable (as in suicide) or may be as a result of natural disasters (earthquake or storm) Each of these sorts of death may bring about different kinds of effects on children and cause the family structure to suffer. There are a number of symptoms which can appear in children after facing the loss of a family member, like physical symptoms (such as headaches), psychological problems (depression and anxiety) and educational problems. Psychological counseling for family member and children can help children's emotional health and spiritual counseling makes them calmer. In order for the children to manage coping with the death of a family member, numerous solutions have been offered among which the following measures can be of great help: children should be taught about the inevitability and irreversibility of death, children's cultural and religious perception should be strengthened, obstacles of their mourning should be removed, they should be given sufficient information about death, their attachment towards God ought to be strengthened and they should be encouraged to replace God instead of the missing person.