Resilience Through Loss: Transforming Grief into Growth—A Narrative Review

Grief is a universal yet deeply personal experience shaped by psychological, cultural, spiritual, and existential dimensions. This narrative review critiques the narrow framing of grief within Western diagnostic models and reinterprets it as a dynamic process with potential for growth, identity transformation, and meaning reconstruction. Drawing on classical and contemporary frameworks including Kübler-Ross’s stages, Worden’s tasks, continuing bonds theory, and posttraumatic growth, the review highlights risks of pathologization and foregrounds culturally responsive perspectives. Posttraumatic growth is presented as a multidimensional phenomenon involving deeper appreciation of life, strengthened relationships, resilience, new possibilities, and existential development. Integrating psychological, cultural, and spiritual insights, the review proposes a holistic, transformation-oriented approach to grief and concludes with clinical guidance for trauma-informed, culturally sensitive, and meaning-centered care.