In a longitudinal study of 219 couples, the nature of the circumstances surrounding the death of a child and psychological adjustment were assessed (Meij et al., 2008). They tracked symptoms of grief and depression among participants 6, 13 and 20 months after death. They found that the psychological adjustment of bereaved parents improved by learning to reconnect and find meaning in the loss. The results showed no gender differences in psychological symptoms. However, bereaved mothers showed significantly more depression than bereaved fathers. Study findings suggest that grieving mothers are likely to experience symptoms of complicated grief and depression following the death of a child. Other research on this topic was the focus of a phenomenological study by Harper et al., (2011). When investigating the lived experience of bereaved mothers, their data indicated a strong and ongoing bond between the mother and the deceased child. This bond often manifested itself in a strong desire for physical contact with the deceased child, more suicidal thoughts and difficulty giving up one's maternal role, resulting in greater difficulty accepting the loss of the child. The article indicates that factors related to maternal care can predict higher levels of depression and suicidal tendencies