Families Bereaved by Alcohol or Drugs

Individuals bereaved by the drug- or alcohol-related death of a family member represent a sizeable group worldwide. Families Bereaved by Alcohol or Drugs is the long-awaited result of an important and ambitious research project into the experiences commonly encountered by members of this stigmatized and vulnerable group.

Dr Christine Valentine is a Research Fellow and member of the Centre for Death and Society at the University of Bath. She is a founding member of the Association for the Study of Death and Society. Christine has published widely on the social and cultural shaping of bereavement in Britain and Japan, on funeral welfare systems for people on low income both nationally and internationally, and on funeral directing in the 21st century. She was the lead researcher for the ESRC-funded research on which the present book is based.

Foreword Introduction Part 1: Coping 1. Families Living with and Bereaved by Substance Use 2. The Impact of a Substance-related Death 3. Managing Stigma 4. Remembering a Life that Involved Substance Use 5. The Diversity of Bereavement through Substance Use Part 2: Support 6. Dealing with Substance-related Deaths 7. Improving the Response of Services 8. Conclusion