Examining the 16-year trajectories of mental health and wellbeing through the transition into widowhood

Becoming widowed is a significant event. There is considerable evidence that surviving partners report substantial changes in their wellbeing and mental health. Changes can occur prior to partner s death as an anticipatory effect and consequently during the period after partner s death. For most, declines in wellbeing and mental health dissipate over time. However, there is a limited long-term evidence to compare age-normative trajectories in mental health and wellbeing with the trajectories of those who transition into widowhood.