The suicide of a loved one is a deeply painful experience.
For some, it might create trauma and require grief therapy to handle.
However, some people can deal with loss from suicide in other ways.
The period after suffering the loss of a loved one from suicide can be filled with many difficult emotions.
Some of the negative feelings you have might be directed at yourself.
Yet, it is important for you to practice self-care to deal with loss from suicide.
Joining a support group can be an important method to process the guilt of suicide.
Unlike most death, your support system might be unfamiliar with how to handle grief from suicide.
You might feel more welcome and understood by strangers who have suffered similar losses.
It is important to remember that your loved one is more than how they passed on.
Death is only a part of life.
This means to deal with loss from suicide, consider looking back at the life of your loved one wholistically, good and bad.
Deal with loss from suicide in the following ways.
Loss from suicide is disorienting for most people.
You might get a rush of emotions or even just be numb.
Anticipate that a number of the feelings you have will be negative.
It is important for you to validate your feelings.
For instance, If you feel confused rather than feeling sad, try not to force yourself to feel sad.
Your feelings might slowly emerge when you accept them.
Each person grieves differently; it would help you focus only on what you are feeling rather than how others are grieving.
Also, try not to avoid your feelings.
The negative feelings can consume you if you try to ignore them.
One of the hardest things you probably need to do to deal with loss from suicide is to accept your feelings.
Death will likely leave unanswered questions for you.
You can consider writing a letter expressing yourself to the deceased.
A common thought after the loss of a loved one is that the manner in which they died determines their life.
It is important to remember that there are other moments in the life of the person you loved.
It would help you to deal with loss from suicide to remember the person.
Although you might be tempted to go in the opposite direction towards burying your memories about the person, try to consider the fond memories you shared with the deceased.
You can do this with old friends and other family members.
Having discussions in remembrance of the person usually occurs at the memorial.
It would help you to join others in remembering other parts of the deceased's life.
Journaling is an excellent method to keep the entirety of your loved one.
Beyond the end of their life, your loved one had probably lived and done many things.
When you remember fond memories with the deceased, you might appreciate the opportunity that you had to spend time with the person.
It is also natural to get sad about the loss.
The loss of a loved one can be devastating.
However, loss from suicide can be more difficult to get over.
A common feeling associated with the suicide of a loved one is guilt.
This guilt can discourage you from taking care of yourself.
You might have thoughts that you want to share the pain of your loved one.
Going down the path of self-punishment is a very unhealthy way to cope with your loss.
It might also be tempting to self-medicate the pain away.
However, at the point of grieving, it would be more helpful for you to take care of your health.
This will likely give you more clarity about the situation and allow you to deal with the loss.
Try to get a good sleep, eat healthily, exercise frequently, and spend time outdoors.
Self-care might be hard for you to consider due to all the self-loathing.
However, self-care puts you in a good position to deal with loss from suicide.
One of the unique things about support groups is that there is a common empathy among participants.
Although you can get support from family and friends after your loss, there might be a lack of understanding of certain things.
You might have better luck with a support group.
A great way to deal with loss from suicide is to join a support group.
After losing someone to suicide, you could develop some negative feelings.
This is a human feeling that you might be more comfortable feeling after seeing others with similar feelings.
Also, in a support group, you can be totally honest.
When you are receiving support from your family and friends, there might be some words you want to say but feel awkward about.
In front of a bunch of strangers, including some strangers who might have said worse, you might be able to express yourself completely.
Support groups are also likely to have people that have experience with similar things.
Even if you choose to just listen to your support groups, you can learn so much.
You can gain insights into your grief.
Any kind of grief a person is difficult to cope with.
However, the loss of a loved one is particularly difficult because in addition to the loss, there is also a stigma associated with suicide.
However, suicide bears an additional burden associated with loss from suicide which is stigma.
This means you might expect some stigma when a loved one passed away through suicide.
Suicide is a controversial topic for most people, especially from a cultural and religious perspective.
Some people might shun your loss and dub the loss self-inflicted.
Others find it uncomfortable to speak about it.
Depending on the relationship between parties, some people might even direct the blame for the loss on you.
This might make it easy for you to feel alone and isolated due to being surrounded by such rhetoric.
However, try to remember you are not responsible for the suicide of your loved one.
Even when some people might expect you to answer for the loss of your loved one.
One of the best ways to deal with loss from suicide is to conquer the stigma.
It would help you to handle the reaction of some people when you remember that the stigma placed is misguided.
Try to focus on your grieving process.
Although suicide has a long of stigma attached to it, it is actually more common with about 800,000 people each year dying by suicide.
This means that several families and friends will need support for grief.
You can consider ways to deal with loss from suicide such as accepting your feelings, remembering the person, practicing self care, joining a support group, and conquering stigma.
Suicide Grief: Coping with a Loved One's Suicide - HelpGuide.org
3 Ways to Deal With the Suicide of a Loved One - wikiHow
Coping after suicide loss (apa.org)
Coping With Losing Someone to Suicide | Counseling Center (ncsu.edu)
How to Cope When a Loved One Commits Suicide (lifehacker.com)
I am a Licensed Professional Counselor, and owner of Overcomers Counseling. I'm dedicated to helping individuals find strength and healing through life’s challenges. With a deep understanding of mental health and years of professional experience, I specialize in fostering hope and resilience while equipping her clients with tools to thrive. Passionate about empowering others, she creates a safe, supportive space where everyone feels seen, valued, and capable of overcoming obstacles on their path to well-being.
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