One of the first and most common sentiments survivors of suicide loss will share is that they don’t know how a loved one could have taken their own life, or why they did. On the surface, there appeared to be no signs or symptoms. And, the idea of suicide was never mentioned. Many times, the person who took their life was by all accounts the life of the party – a happy go lucky individual who had everything.
When I am sharing my story, I always ...
How celebrity suicides left me feeling worse about my own loss
Celebrity suicides in the news can unearth mixed emotions for “everyday” survivors. As a huge fan of the late musician Chris Cornell, I’ve struggled with how to grieve or talk about his death. This is because I am dealing with it from two perspectives – one as the longtime fan who hangs on to memories of concerts and mourns the loss of his work yet to come – and second as someone who has lost a family member to suicide and knows and dreads the ...
Surviving a Tragedy in the Online Age
Whether it’s a suicide or another type of horrific tragedy, experiencing the public-facing death of a loved one in today’s online age is something I wish upon no one. It’s enough to experience the trauma and another to see complete strangers interjecting with their unwelcome opinions. This is something we didn’t face years ago and it can add an entirely new component to grief recovery.
I cringe when I see media reporting on suicides and ...
I Learned My Dad Died on Facebook
I've shared about the moment I became a survivor of suicide, but never in great detail. It is now part of who I am and I feel compelled to expand.
“Sorry for your loss.” This dispirited and ambiguous phrase plastered my Facebook Wall in the 30 minutes I stepped away from my office cubicle for a meeting. While I innocently scrolled through the posts, the weight and reality of their context remained unclear…none of them referenced exactly what I ...
Facing the Discomfort of Tragedy
I’ve noticed a personal phenomenon lately as I scroll through my Facebook News Feed – I avoid or quickly bypass stories that make me feel uncomfortable. This is a highly subjective practice, knowing everyone has different emotional “triggers” - a term I learned in online forums. (I actually hate the word triggers since my dad took his life with a gun.) But, now I’m wondering if my avoidance of these tragic topics is making me a hypocrite. After ...