More on grief: a new disorder

 The American Psychiatric Association has added “prolonged grief disorder” to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, commonly called the DSM.

It’s the newest disorder to make the DSM. It reaches print with DSM-5, released this month. 

I’m baffled how something natural, such as grief, can become an illness. I realize something similar happens with physical structures, as when a natural growth becomes a malignant tumor. But I don’t see clearly how natural emotions can become something that can be called an illness.

Does that make sense to you?

I’m dubious, but on this topic I’m especially dense. I’m just baffled by grief.

• Source: The American Psychiatric Association’s account is at https://www.psychiatry.org/newsroom/news-releases/apa-offers-tips-for-understanding-prolonged-grief-disorder