Resource Tag: LOSS (PSYCHOLOGY)

Background Most research investigating the effect of suicide on loss survivors has been limited to first-degree family members. Few studies examine the impact of suicide on others outside the immediate family and the influence of relationship type and closeness on mental health. Methods This study used data from a sample obtained through random digit dialing […]

Background: Suicide is a topic of public and professional interest. We explored the earliest reports of suicide in the West, ceasing at 30 BCE, seeking a better understanding of suicide. Conclusion: We found twelve accounts of suicide, extending over more than 1000 years. We found no evidence of mental disorder. All cases were associated with […]

Background: People who lost a loved one to suicide (i.e., suicide loss survivors, SLS) often struggle to talk about their experiences. However, previous studies suggest beneficial effects of disclosure among this group. Aims: This study aimed to identify determinants of disclosing suicide loss. Method: We conducted qualitative interviews with 22 female SLS focusing on determinants of disclosing suicide loss. Interviews […]

Purpose Studies on suicide-bereaved parents are scarce in South European and Eastern Mediterranean countries. We explored the experiences of Greek-speaking suicide-bereaved parents in Cyprus, with emphasis on the interpretations of their child’s suicide, its aftereffects and their coping strategies. Methods A qualitative methodology based on inductive content analysis of the interviews of ten mothers and […]

By the time they leave high school, 17% of adolescents will have experienced the suicide death of a friend, peer, or classmate. While some will be unaffected or experience a brief period of distress following the death, for others the death will cause significant disruption and distress, even increasing their risk of suicidal thoughts and […]

Suicide is a global concern for the well-being of families. When parents experience their child’s death by suicide, their well-being can be substantially impaired. This study aimed to explore the lived experiences of parents whose children died by suicide. Data were collected from 25 mothers through interviews between 2019 and 2021 and analyzed using interpretive […]

The loss of a family member or friend can have profound psychological and physical implications, particularly for individuals without bereavement support services. Online support groups can be an effective means of extending services beyond the traditional modes of delivery. This is especially true for populations that include isolated individuals and those with limited support networks, […]

In the case of violent/traumatic loss due to a completed suicide, there can be an overwhelming and complicated grief reaction followed by a spiritual need for the process of sense making and finding meaning. Some emerging literature on suicide loss survivors (SLSs) denotes that suicide loss is more similar to other forms of bereavement but […]

The author has been a grief therapist in private practice for almost 40 years. The largest percentage of his clients have been suicide loss survivors, and in this article, the author reflects on the “lessons learned” about how grief therapy with survivors is both the same as, and very different from, work with clients bereaved […]

Therapies for grief and loss have traditionally focused on the work of grieving. The goal was to reach an endpoint, now popularly called closure. There are, however, many people who, through no fault of their own,  find a loss so unclear that there can be no end to grief. They have not failed in the […]

This article outlines how group practitioners can harness creative strategies to assist addicted clients in verbalizing and addressing the losses associated with addictive disorders. This article overviews the implementation of an experiential process that includes a warm up activity, a psychodrama, and utilization of empty chair techniques to address addiction related grief and loss. In […]

The death of a loved one has serious implications for adolescent growth and development. The authors review relevant research on the grief process and spirituality in adolescence, and they give a rationale for integrating spirituality into adolescent grief work. By way of a case illustration, they draw implications for counselors’ use of spirituality in addressing […]

Background Suicide bereavement is associated with increased risk for severe negative mental health outcomes and suicidality. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between mental health symptoms and suicidal ideation among suicide bereaved while taking multiple factors into account. Methods The sample consisted of N = 157 German suicide bereaved who were interested in receiving an online intervention. The Beck […]

The complicated grief experienced by suicide loss survivors leads to feelings of abandonment, rejection, intense self-blame, and depression. Stigma surrounding suicide further burdens survivors who can experience rejection by their community and social networks. Research in the field of psychology has delved into the grieving process of suicide loss survivors, however the effects of suicide […]

The unfortunate increase of suicides in the modern era has provided a vast body of obituaries ripe for analysis. We analyzed 52 suicide loss obituaries retrieved from Legacy.com, an online obituary aggregator, to determine how they differ from what we know about traditional obituaries and suicide reporting. These suicide obituaries combined emotional appeals with educational […]

Background: Despite great need, social support is limited after suicide loss, which could contribute to worse mental health outcomes including increased suicidality among suicide loss survivors. Aims: To examine the associations between perceived social support, grief difficulties, depressive symptoms, suicidality, and personal growth among 195 suicide loss survivors. Method: The associations between perceived social support, grief difficulties, depressive symptoms, suicidality, […]

The purpose of this qualitative study was to develop understanding of the experience of long-term suicide loss survivors and begin to develop theory of the process of healing. Ten suicide loss survivors were interviewed. Our analyses identified three major categories—one harmful, one helpful, and one that helped to move from harmful to the helpful. Feelings […]

This research was an interpretive study that sought to understand how Anishinabek individuals work through death and loss within the context of culture and spirituality. Multicultural counselling is discussed in the “tangential way in which issues of diversity and multiculturalism are addressed” (Parham, 1995, p. xi) within the counselling forum. Observing that “racial identity is […]

Raising children, while challenging in the best of times, can be more complicated for a woman who lost her own mother during her childhood/adolescent years. This study examines the long-term impact of maternal suicide as evident in the mothering experiences of 12 Israeli women. Findings The participants’ descriptions reveal a constant Sisyphean struggle to move […]

Background: Prolonged Grief Disorder (PGD) is over-represented among those who have lost loved ones to violent causes. To tailor PGD interventions for this vulnerable population it is critical to examine the aetiology of PGD specifically in the context of violent death bereavement. Previous studies have suggested that violent loss increases symptoms of PGD by hindering the […]

The Handbook of Traumatic Loss adopts a broad, holistic approach that recognizes traumatic loss much more fully as a multidimensional human phenomenon, not simply a medical condition. Initial chapters build a foundation for understanding traumatic loss and explore the many ways we respond to trauma. Later chapters counterbalance the individualistic focus of dominant approaches to traumatic loss by […]

This prospective, naturalistic study examined the association between major loss life experiences, other psychiatric risk factors (depression, hopelessness, and anxiety), and suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STBs) among adolescents followed through young adulthood for up to 14 years. Major loss life events were related to subsequent increases in STBs. Major loss life events were primarily related to […]

Includes: • practical steps for setting up and running a group, based on research and international guidelines • experiences and comments from people in New Zealand who are running support groups • examples and