Which of the following are common ways of practicing denial?

• A. Denial is always temporary
• B. Denial only involves visual denial
• C. Denial is integrated into external adjustments
• D. Mummification, selective forgetting, middle knowledge, and spiritualism

Answer: (D)

Denial in mourning often shows up as ways to keep death from feeling final by creating ongoing connections to the deceased or by shaping what is remembered. Mummification preserves the body to provide a tangible, ongoing link to the person, effectively denying the final rupture that death would imply. Selective forgetting lets someone avoid painful or distressing memories, softening the blow by filtering what is acknowledged. Middle knowledge involves holding the belief that the deceased still has awareness or some form of knowledge that can be accessed, which sustains a sense of continued presence. Spiritualism explicitly posits that the dead can communicate or exist in another realm, maintaining contact beyond death. Taken together, these forms show how denial can be expressed through ritual, memory management, beliefs about knowledge or presence, and ongoing relational ties. The other ideas are too narrow or incomplete—denial isn’t limited to what is seen, temporary, or only tied to adjusting external circumstances.