It helps to talk about suicide loss, to give this often-stigmatized grief air and light so we can process, heal, and let go of lingering ghosts of shame.Īs much as we need to talk about this, the media must take care to report on suicide responsibly and with respect for the loved ones left behind. The stark reminder in Kate Spade's bewildering death It’s a common form of grief, just not a commonly talked about one. Since then, I’ve learned that several friends had faced such loss, but their families had wanted them to keep the circumstances silent since then, a few of my closest friends have lost loved ones to suicide. When my mother died, I felt isolated I couldn’t remember knowing anyone personally who had lost a loved one to suicide. Millions of loved ones left to grapple with confusion and regret and anger and guilt, along with the particularly complicated grief that suicide leaves in its wake. That’s 800,000 hearts intentionally stilled. According to the World Health Organization, close to 800,000 people take their own lives worldwide every year. In America, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a person dies by suicide every 13 minutes. There are more of us suicide loss survivors than some might think. My mother took her own life in 2009, and whenever I hear news of a suicide, it both reopens that grief and sends my heart hurtling toward the freshly grieving family, the family reeling from shock and pain.

The Suicide Index by Joan Wickersham