Anticipatory grief and AIDS: strategies for intervening with caregivers

Anticipatory grief may have beneficial effects for caregivers of people with HIV infection or AIDS. However, the duration of the illness and the stigmatization and multiple losses associated with the disease may impede the caregiver's ability to effectively engage in the grief process. This article discusses the impact of these aspects of the disease on the anticipatory grief process and mourning tasks for caregivers at each stage of the illness. Intervention strategies developed to help the caregiver remain actively involved with the patient and simultaneously grieve losses and prepare for death are specified.