Social support plays an important role in the context of bereavement. Social support is a network of friends, family and colleagues that provides emotional, informational or directly applied support to a person. It mitigates the effects of experiencing a threat or loss through:
1) Emotional support: listening, empathy, and reaffirming a person’s worth and status.
2) Informational support: providing advice, guidance on solutions and explanation of available options.
3) Practical or material support: assistance with daily activities or provision of resources to mitigate the effects of loss.