“The grief exists in a bubble that the rest of the world doesn't see”: Exploring biographical disruption and meaning-making amongst people bereaved during the Covid-19 pandemic

People bereaved during the Covid-19 pandemic experienced profoundly altered death, mourning and grieving practices. Worsened grief outcomes have been widely reported but less is known about how people coped during these unprecedented times. Using reflexive thematic analysis critically informed by theories of biographical disruption and meaning-making, we analysed 39 interview transcripts from 24 people bereaved during the pandemic in the UK. We describe five core domains of disruption and associated meaning making: difficult and traumatic death experiences; disrupted mourning practices; loss of relationship and sense of self; social relationships, isolation and support; and developing understandings of grief. While the multi-dimensionality and severity of the disruption experienced was striking, so too were the ways in which people reappraised and reconstructed more positive and coherent accounts, often in relational ways, helping to explain their varied grief and coping experiences. Findings demonstrate the utility of critically combining these theoretical frameworks for conceptualising and contextualising grieving during ‘extraordinary’, as well as more ‘ordinary’ times. Implications are identified for minimising the disruption inherent in stressful bereavement circumstances, whilst also supporting people to reconcile and make meaning in their experiences.