What Does It Mean for Sadness to Heal? A Systematic Review

Several studies have elucidated the process following bereavement. However, the conditions that indicate the state of healed sadness, a typical emotion associated with bereavement, remain unclear. As death cannot be avoided, clarifying the state of healed sadness associated with it is a significant social issue. This systematic review examined experiences of sadness through bereavement and clarified what it means for such sadness to heal. Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, a literature search was performed using six databases: CINAHL, Cochrane, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, PubMed, and Web of Science. Three studies were identified and twenty-three descriptions representing the state of healed sadness were extracted, which were further divided into seven categories. Further research is needed to comprehensively examine whether these categories genuinely represent the state of healed sadness or whether other descriptions should also be considered.