Restorative Retelling for Violent Loss: An Open Clinical Trial

Those impacted by the loss of a loved one to violent death (i.e., homicide, suicide, or accident) may be at risk for posttraumatic stress, depression, and prolonged grief. Restorative retelling (RR) is a structured group intervention developed to improve coping skills, integrate commemoration of the deceased, and approach traumatic memories. This article provides initial evidence for the use of RR in reducing trauma, depression, and prolonged grief symptoms in a records review open trial of 51 violent loss survivors at a community counseling clinic. Results suggested that RR was well tolerated with a significant decrease in symptoms.