The Effects of Grief on the Human Body

About the Book

The death of a loved one may cause severe emotional and physiological reactions up to and including death. The author, a practicing physician for forty years and married for sixty-one years, shares his personal experiences after the loss of his wife—experiences that occurred even though his wife’s death was not unexpected. Every person handles grief differently, but it is crucial to understand the basic principles of what may occur and learn how best to cope. This knowledge could save your life.

About the Author

A graduate of the University of Illinois College of Medicine, Sheldon Cohen has practiced internal medicine, served as a medical director of the Alexian Brother’s Medical Center in Northwest Suburban Chicago, and served as the medical director of two managed care organizations: Cigna Health plan of Illinois and Humanicare Plus of Illinois. The author taught internal medicine and physical diagnosis to medical students from Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine and the Chicago Medical School. Recognizing the fact that busy physicians are pressed for time and thus often fail to capture a thorough medical history, the author developed one of the first computerized medical history systems for private practice and wrote a paper on his experience with 1500 patients who utilized the system. This was one of the early efforts in promoting electronic health records, a work in progress to this day. Serving as a consultant for Joint Commission Resources of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, the author did quality consultations at hospitals in the United States, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Copenhagen, Denmark, and served as a consultant to the Ministry of Health in Ukraine, assisting them in the development of a hospital accrediting body. Dr. Cohen is the author of 30 books. He was fortunate enough to go to a dance at the YMCA where he met Betty Lou Richards with whom he would spend sixty-five years before she died of natural causes. This book discusses the actual effects of grief on the author after the death of his wife of 61 years. It is a warning to be prepared for grief’s potential serious effects. Understanding and preparation is the key.