Why does the pathologization of grief cause such a stir? A comment on Bergsmark and Ramsing

Abstract

After years of debate, a new diagnosis called prolonged grief disorder (PGD) was finally included in the 11th edition of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11; World Health Organization). The pathologization of grief has been controversial and caused quite a stir among researchers, practitioners, and the general public. Recently, Bergsmark and Ramsing (2023) have addressed some considerations that they believe are lost in the ensuing debate, and they call for a positive response to the diagnosis among psychologists. In this reply, I argue that we have good reasons to maintain a critical stance both toward the specific grief diagnosis and toward the general pathologization of human suffering.