We might think it is simply a metaphor to say that we have lost a part of ourselves when a loved one dies, but as we have seen, representations of our loved ones are coded in our neurons. Representations of our own bodies are coded in our neurons as well, as demonstrated by the phantom limbs. These representations of the self and the other, this closeness, is mapped as a dimension in the brain. Consequently, the process of grieving is not just about psychological or metaphorical change. Grieving requires neural rewiring as well.
