When Tragedy Strikes: Suicide Postvention on a College Campus
By Sally Spencer-Thomas, Ph.D.
(Originally printed in the International Association for Suicide Prevention’s Postvention Taskforce Newsletter, September 2009, www.iasp.info).
In his rural high school, David had it all– valedictorian, president of his class, and a varsity starter for the basketball team. When a good friend and teammate of his took his life, David’s world assumptions were shattered, and he found himself spending much of his summer drinking with the other members of the team as they tried to cope with the loss. As college started in the fall, he moved to another state to attend a big urban college, and he left his friends behind. He struggled with his classes and felt very isolated and lonely despite being surrounded by lots of people. By mid-semester, he received a report card of failing grades and got a strong reprimand from his father who feared David would lose his scholarship. On the day before David was supposed to go home for the holidays, he hung himself in his dormitory bedroom. Continue reading››
Hands Across the Ocean
By Karyl Chastain Beal
The Internet has removed fences and geographic borders, changing the face of grief support groups. Even the ocean is no longer a barrier to connecting with people … just like us.
When I attended face-to-face support group meetings shortly after my daughter Arlyn took her life, the other people there were people that I could easily have bumped into while shopping at Wal-mart, going to a medical appointment, or attending church. We read the same newspaper, our children attended the same schools, and we generally spoke with the same southern accent. They were people I related to because we shared the same community environment.
Now, however, people who join the Parents of Suicides (POS) & Friends and Families of Suicides (FFOS) Internet Community for grief support will find a totally different group of folks to connect with. Some of them may live in the same state, or a state far away, but it’s just as likely that the people they connect with will live in France, Zimbabwe, New Zealand, China, or Ireland. They may speak with a Russian or German accent, a Scottish accent, a Portuguese accent, or an English or Australian accent. Continue reading››
RISE (Resilient Integration for Survivor Empowerment) for Removing Guilt of Suicide of Loved Ones
By Cecilia Lai Wan Chan, Ph.D.
Introduction
It is common for suicide-bereaved survivors to ask questions such as: “How come I didn’t notice any signs of it before? I should have stopped it! Did I say something wrong? It is all my fault! How come you abandoned the family and me? I am to be blamed. I am responsible for your death. I can do nothing, I have no hope! I can’t go on with my life…”
Doris suffered from depression for 10 years following her grandmother’s suicide. She cannot hold on to a job. She tried to run away from her home. She has no friends. She holds on to a Continue reading››