Risks of unresolved grief

The grieving process involves a symbolic elaboration which, when interrupted or stuck in one of its phases, can deviate towards pathological forms of suffering.

The inability to psychologically process loss not only prevents progress, but can also trigger unconscious mechanisms that disrupt the subject's emotional, affective, and symbolic life. This deviation can give rise to phenomena such as melancholy, persistent self-deprecation, and subtle forms of self-harm.

Fixation on the lost object and resistance to change

When the subject is unable to accept the loss in its real dimension, they may unconsciously cling to the imaginary presence of the object.

This fixation prevents the emotional energy invested in that bond from being released, blocking the possibility of building new relationships or interests. At this point, pain ceases to be a transition towards transformation and becomes a psychic barrier that paralyzes.

The inner world freezes around that loss, and the subject begins to live as if what was lost were still present or as if its absence defined them completely. Instead of reframing the loss, the subject resists the psychological movement that letting go would entail, leading to deep emotional stagnation.

Pathological identification: from grief to melancholy

One of the most serious ways in which unprocessed grief manifests itself is through unconscious identification with the lost object. Instead of saying goodbye internally to what is no longer there, the subject incorporates it psychologically, replacing the external loss with an internal appropriation.

But this identification is not beneficial; on the contrary, it becomes a source of pain. The problem is exacerbated when this identification is accompanied by ambivalent feelings toward the object.

The love that was felt for it coexists with unconscious reproaches, anger, or guilt. Having incorporated it into the self, all that ambivalence is now directed toward oneself. Thus, the subject begins to despise, judge harshly, or punish themselves, giving rise to a melancholic picture.

Risk mechanisms: ambivalence, self-criticism, and self-harm

The transition from unresolved grief to melancholy is sustained by a psychic structure marked by ambivalence. Love for what has been lost coexists with resentment for having been abandoned, disappointed, or frustrated.

This contradiction is not resolved externally, but re