In this powerful episode of The Survivors, Lisa and Gretchen unpack the complex, emotional aftermath of losing someone to suicide. They speak from personal experience—offering raw insight, practical support, and the crucial reminder that healing begins with conversation.
Watch the Video Podcast on YouTube:
A video version of this episode is available here: https://www.youtube.com/@TheSurvivorsPodcastChannel
This episode is proudly brought to you by Schoser Talent and Wellness Solutions
Struggling with employee burnout, high turnover, or clunky onboarding processes? Feeling overwhelmed by change or unsure how to support your team’s mental health in the workplace? You’re not alone. Welcome to Schoser Talent and Wellness Solutions—your all-in-one partner for building healthier, more resilient organizations.
At Schoser Solutions, we blend decades of expertise in talent strategy, employee wellness, and HR technology to help small and mid-sized businesses thrive. We specialize in optimizing UKG Recruiting and Onboarding systems—transforming the way you attract, hire, and welcome new talent—while also offering custom-built mental wellness programs, stress management toolkits, and change readiness assessments.
Whether you're navigating rapid growth, organizational change, or looking to better support your employees' mental well-being, we meet you where you are—with practical tools, strategic insight, and a deeply human approach.
Because when your systems run smoothly and your people feel supported, everyone wins. Visit https://schosersolutions.com today.
You don’t have to figure it all out alone—we’ve got you.
💙Because your mental well-being matters. 💙
Episode Summary
Lisa and Gretchen dive deep into the emotional toll of suicide loss—a grief experience unlike any other. They share their personal stories, explore common reactions like guilt, anger, isolation, and PTSD, and talk about how societal stigma compounds the pain. Together, they break down what to say, what not to say, and how to truly show up for survivors of suicide loss. If you've ever lost someone this way or are supporting someone who has, this episode is a lifeline.
Lessons Learned
- Suicide loss grief carries unique emotions—shame, blame, anger, and stigma.
- Survivors often don’t recognize they’re trauma survivors, but therapy can reframe the experience.
- People often don’t know how to support a suicide loss survivor, making the grief even more isolating.
- Simple, direct support like saying the person’s name or offering to walk the dog can make a huge difference.
- Avoid harmful clichés; instead, listen without judgment and hold space for real emotion.
Episode Chapters
00:00 – Trigger Warning & Welcome
01:00 – Why Suicide Grief Is Different
04:00 – Guilt, Anger, and the Blame Game
07:00 – The Stigma of Silence
09:00 – Recognizing Trauma and PTSD
12:00 – Social Withdrawal After Suicide Loss
16:00 – Supporting Survivors in Their Grief
19:00 – What to Say (and Not to Say)
22:00 – Four Ways to Show Up for Someone in Grief
26:00 – Resources, Support, and Final Reflections
28:00 – Closing Words of Hope
Resources for Mental Health & Support
🔹 The Survivors Podcast Website – https://thesurvivors.net/
🔹 The HelpHUB™ – Mental health resources, tools, and support networks – https://www.thehelphub.co/
🔹 Schoser Talent and Wellness Solutions – Mental wellness coaching & support – https://schosersolutions.com/
🔹 Sh!t That Goes On In Our Heads – A raw, award-winning mental health podcast – https://goesoninourheads.net/
🔹 Safe Place Virtual Support Group for Survivors of Suicide Loss facilitated by Samaritans Southcoast https://www.samaritanssoco.org/i-lost-someone-to-suicide
Follow & Connect With Us
📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_survivors_podcast
🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-survivors-podcast
🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheSurvivorsPodcastChannel
A Shameless Plug for Our Sister Podcast!
Our incredible sister podcast, Sh!t That Goes On In Our Heads, has been nominated for two People's Choice Podcast Awards—the Adam Curry Award and the Health Award! 🏆
Let’s help them bring it home!
👉 Vote here: https://www.podcastawards.com
👉 Register with a valid email address (they do verify emails)
👉 Vote for Sh!t That Goes On In Our Heads in both categories
🗓️ Deadline to vote is July 31st, 2025
Thank you for supporting their powerful mission to normalize mental health conversations through raw, real, and relatable storytelling!
#TheSurvivorsPodcast #EndTheStigma #MentalHealthMatters #SuicidePrevention #YouAreNotAlone #BreakTheSilence #GriefSupport #988Lifeline #SurvivorStories #HealingTogether #PodMatch #MentalHealth #SuicideAwareness #Podcast #Community #Hope #Grief #Stigma #MentalIllness #Support #LisaSugarman #GretchenSchoser #SchoserTalentandWellnessSolutions #TheHelpHUB
See You Next Week!
Stay strong, keep going, and remember: You are enough. 💜
00:00:01
The Survivors is brought to you by our friends at Schoser Talent and Wellness
00:00:05
Solutions. This podcast mentions suicide, mental illness,
00:00:08
grief, and loss and may be triggering for some listeners. So
00:00:12
please take care of your mental well being by pausing or skipping any
00:00:15
sections that feel uncomfortable to you. And if you or someone you know is struggling,
00:00:19
please call 988 for support. Well,
00:00:23
isn't that a pleasure to have you do an actual, real, live,
00:00:26
professional countdown. Nobody heard it. I was the only one that heard it and saw
00:00:30
it. But that was a pretty professional countdown that you did. That was exciting
00:00:33
because. Well, you don't want me to have it on the screen anymore. Yeah, that's
00:00:37
okay. So we're here again. I love that we just keep coming back
00:00:40
and keep coming back because there is a lifetime's worth of stuff to talk
00:00:44
about. Oh, wow. My pink lipstick is looking. That is a pink
00:00:48
lip gloss. It's pink. Yeah, yeah. You
00:00:52
can't. You can't see it if this is the audio version. It's glossy. It's very
00:00:55
glossy. Yeah. I feel very bougie right now, so.
00:00:59
Hey, G. Hey, girl. So this
00:01:02
week we're gonna go deep in a different way and
00:01:06
talk about the emotional toll
00:01:10
on suicide loss survivors. And
00:01:14
as someone who has lost three people that I
00:01:18
love to suicide over the course of my life,
00:01:22
so it's been a constant thing, constant type of grief.
00:01:26
I can promise you that it's not like
00:01:30
all the other kinds of grief. I'm not saying anything is better or
00:01:34
worse, because grief is grief, and there's nothing good about grief except
00:01:38
that it means we loved our person. But
00:01:41
it's hard. Grieving is incredibly draining,
00:01:46
and especially suicide grief, which I'm glad that we're having this
00:01:49
conversation to talk about. What makes it so
00:01:53
unique? I know you have lost people
00:01:57
that you love to suicide as well, so you know that
00:02:01
kind of grief personally firsthand.
00:02:04
And I just think it's important that we explore
00:02:08
that emotional and psychological aftermath. Because it's an aftermath. Because
00:02:12
you are blown to bits. I know I was.
00:02:16
And it takes a lot to pick. Up those pieces
00:02:20
and, like, a lot of it. For me, it was. The blame game
00:02:23
is like, why didn't I see the signs?
00:02:27
Why didn't they open up? Why. Why
00:02:31
are we just finding out about this now?
00:02:34
For me, that was the hardest part. Yeah. Yeah. That's a big part of it.
00:02:38
And when you kind of isolate
00:02:41
grief, generalized grief, like someone has
00:02:45
lost a grandparent because they were 94 years old and they drifted away,
00:02:49
or someone, God forbid, had Cancer or someone was killed
00:02:53
in an accident. Those are all deep, tragic,
00:02:57
sad losses. We grieve them, we mourn
00:03:00
them. They don't have some of the things
00:03:05
attached to them though that suicide has.
00:03:08
And I think it's important to name those. Like, as we move into
00:03:12
this conversation, I think it's important that we just like call those things out
00:03:16
right now. So when I say that
00:03:20
suicide is very nuanced. It's
00:03:23
nuanced because there is guilt that can
00:03:27
often be attached. What, what didn't
00:03:30
I see? What signs did I miss? Why didn't I
00:03:34
help sooner? Those, those things are
00:03:38
not generally present when someone dies of
00:03:42
a heart attack or someone dies of natural causes in another way.
00:03:46
There's, there's anger. Deep, deep
00:03:50
anger. In a lot of cases for the people who are left
00:03:54
behind, like, why did you leave me behind? Like, my mother could have been furious.
00:03:58
My father took his life when My mother
00:04:01
was 40 years old with a 10 year old child. My mom worked part time
00:04:06
and he was literally there one day, took his life and was
00:04:10
gone and left my mother with
00:04:14
a whole life to manage. She was the
00:04:18
breadwinner, she was my support system. She was raising a child alones.
00:04:22
It would not have been unusual for my mother
00:04:26
to have been furious. In my mom's case, she never was. But a
00:04:30
lot of people are. There is crazy confusion.
00:04:34
I know when we, we found out one of our closest friends took his life
00:04:38
just a little over four years ago. He was one of the people who. You'd
00:04:42
never see the sign. It's like you never had any idea. Like my dad, you
00:04:45
didn't know anything was wrong. And you're. I had a friend, one of my
00:04:48
best friends in the world called me up and said, is it
00:04:52
true that our friend took his life? I'm like, what are you talking about? Who,
00:04:55
which friend? Like, I, I wasn't, I didn't even know what he was talking about.
00:04:58
It's. Your brain is just. Nothing computes
00:05:03
then like you already talked about. There's shame. It
00:05:07
can be so shameful and, and the stigma too.
00:05:11
Because when you, when you go to try and tell people
00:05:14
that your father, your mother, your brother, your sister or friend,
00:05:20
that how they died. Like people just clam
00:05:24
up. They don't know how to talk about suicide.
00:05:28
Yes, I lost my father to suicide. Yes, I lost my
00:05:31
mother to suicide. In my case, I lost a cousin to
00:05:35
suicide. I also lost a classmate to suicide.
00:05:39
I lost a co worker to suicide. But talking about
00:05:43
it, there's still stigma around it. People don't want you
00:05:46
to talk about it. Listen, people, people take
00:05:50
their lives every day. Every
00:05:54
day. We've talked about this statistic. You know how I feel about this one particular
00:05:58
statistic that I've mentioned in at least one episode, maybe more,
00:06:02
but if you haven't heard me say it, I'll say it again.
00:06:06
Over 700 people a year take their life in this
00:06:10
world. And for every one human
00:06:13
who takes their own life, it's been determined
00:06:18
through all of the major organizations, all statistically,
00:06:22
that for every one person who dies by suicide,
00:06:24
135 people are affected by
00:06:28
that loss. And those people may include spouse,
00:06:32
partner, family, children, co workers,
00:06:35
friends, and that's the average. So, you know, the number goes up and
00:06:39
down, but it's 135 people on
00:06:43
average are impacted for every one suicide.
00:06:47
And yet, like you said, suicide is one of those
00:06:50
things. Nobody wants to talk about it, nobody
00:06:54
wants to confront it, nobody wants
00:06:58
to be affected by it. And yet, if you add those
00:07:01
two numbers together of how many people die by suicide and how many people are
00:07:05
affected, that's like 94 million people a year
00:07:08
are stuck in a place of
00:07:12
feeling all these feelings about something that happened and no one's talking
00:07:15
about it. And society
00:07:19
is not doing us any favors. Every time we don't talk about
00:07:23
adds to the stigma, it adds to the pain. And
00:07:27
we need to keep talking about it and we need to realize that there is
00:07:31
a true emotional toll for the
00:07:35
survivor. And as you said, it's different than somebody that
00:07:38
gets killed in a car accident, somebody that dies by cancer, somebody that
00:07:42
d natural causes. It is different. You are left
00:07:46
with so many questions in your head
00:07:50
that sometimes you don't, don't know how to articulate or
00:07:53
you're afraid to articulate because of how
00:07:57
somebody might perceive that. Because I'm telling you, the minute you,
00:08:01
you say the word suicide, people are like, oh, I can't talk about that. Gotta
00:08:04
go. And look, we
00:08:08
live in a culture that has created that
00:08:11
stereotype. It unfairly stigmatizes
00:08:14
the act of someone dying by suicide.
00:08:18
So this is how we're all hardwired. It's not because we've all
00:08:22
chosen to feel this way. It's because society made us feel this way.
00:08:26
It's because only recently the mental health community as a whole was
00:08:30
talking about it being okay to not be okay and that
00:08:33
we have resources and things are in the mainstream now, but for the better part
00:08:37
of history, it's never been that way. And you want to know something?
00:08:41
Interesting. And I'm not sure I ever mentioned this last
00:08:44
season. I know I haven't mentioned it this season so far.
00:08:48
So I started back into therapy. I was in therapy when I was
00:08:52
probably 21, 22. It was at that time
00:08:56
I took a gap year. I didn't know what I wanted to do with my
00:08:58
life. So I, to a therapist, I talked about my dad, but not in the
00:09:02
context of suicide. Because if you've never heard my story, I
00:09:06
didn't know that my father took his life for 35 years. So when I was
00:09:09
in therapy back in the day, it was just because I didn't know what I
00:09:12
wanted to do with my life. So I'm back in therapy as of a few
00:09:15
years ago, mainly to talk about my dad and, and all the
00:09:18
baggage there with his suicide. Do you know
00:09:22
that? And this may seem so dumb for people listening, I never
00:09:26
realized that I was a trauma survivor
00:09:30
until my therapist reminded me that I was a trauma
00:09:34
survivor. And I can tell you
00:09:38
that it took me by such
00:09:41
surprise. I just. Don't ask me why she said, you're a trauma survivor just
00:09:45
because you lost your dad as a child. Which of course
00:09:49
I never, I never saw that. I never knew that. And then she said
00:09:53
when you found out your dad took his life, you are a full
00:09:56
on trauma survivor. I didn't know that. That's what
00:10:00
suicide makes us when we are a survivor
00:10:04
of that kind of loss. It also
00:10:07
leads to ptsd. I don't know about you, but it leads to ptsd, it leads
00:10:10
to anxiety, it leads to depression, people withdraw, leads to
00:10:14
isolation. There is a big
00:10:17
psychological impact to this subject that
00:10:21
you and I talk about every week. And
00:10:24
that's why it's so important that we talk about it every week.
00:10:29
And I think of husband and wife teams where either
00:10:32
the husband has taken his life or the wife,
00:10:37
their whole social circle was built around
00:10:41
that marriage. And then having people asking,
00:10:44
you know, the spouse that survived. How did you not see the
00:10:48
signs? Like, don't ask those questions
00:10:53
like we're already grieving. Why couldn't you get them into therapy?
00:10:56
Okay, if you are anybody, like I was, we, we
00:11:00
mask up. We don't let on that anything is going on.
00:11:05
Be kind. It's a, it's a, it's a grief that
00:11:10
you can't get over because you're already beating yourself up. And then
00:11:14
you have your social group beating you up. You may
00:11:17
not realize that you're doing it, but you're beating them up. Yeah, that's a good
00:11:21
point. That's, that's a very important point. I remember
00:11:25
being a little kid, you know, I was raised by a, a single mom
00:11:29
from the time I was 10 years old. And I remember when my mom
00:11:33
was encouraged to go to this group. God, the funny things that you remember.
00:11:37
There was this group at the local community center and it was called Alone
00:11:41
by Choice or Chance. So it was people who were widowed or people who were
00:11:44
divorced and I don't know, my mom's friends encouraged her
00:11:48
to go and she was trying to just meet people
00:11:51
and, and I remember just
00:11:56
that being like the only thing that she was doing socially was going to that
00:11:59
group because people just,
00:12:03
they treat you differently even when they don't mean to treat you differently. You don't
00:12:07
get the invitations to do the things that you maybe did with your couple
00:12:10
friends and your life and your circle get very,
00:12:14
very small. And my mother has always been incredibly
00:12:18
outgoing, very social. Everything was always at our house,
00:12:21
all the holidays and events and
00:12:25
milestones. What if your business could
00:12:28
recruit smarter, onboard faster and support
00:12:31
employee wellness all at once? Welcome to shows or
00:12:35
talent and wellness solutions where people first strategy
00:12:38
meets real results. With over 45 years of combined
00:12:42
experience and 16 years specializing in UKG recruiting
00:12:46
and onboarding systems, we help small and mid sized businesses
00:12:49
thrive. From the first application to full integration,
00:12:53
we streamline your hiring process, reduce time to hire
00:12:57
and deliver seamless onboarding experiences. Our
00:13:00
proprietary tools like the recruiting and onboarding health check
00:13:04
and the employee mental Wellness Index turn insight into
00:13:08
impact at showser. We know that businesses are built on people.
00:13:11
That's why we integrate wellness into every solution. Promoting
00:13:15
mental health, reducing burnout and creating a culture where talent
00:13:19
stays and thrives. Whether you're navigating change,
00:13:22
implementing tech or engaging your team, we tailor
00:13:26
every solution. To fit your goals. Visit
00:13:29
chosersolutions.com today. Let's build a healthier,
00:13:33
more productive future one workplace at a time.
00:13:38
But I do remember that they had their couple
00:13:42
friends that they socialized with and that just, it's sad.
00:13:46
It just kind of faded away. And I, I think a lot of it's
00:13:50
because people just don't know how to handle it. And I,
00:13:54
my take on that is like handle the
00:13:58
death of someone by suicide the same way you would handle
00:14:02
any other type of death. Don't exclude them from your
00:14:05
social group because they still need connection.
00:14:10
Don't be whispering behind their back.
00:14:15
Be present there for them.
00:14:18
And it's not a, it's not a grief that just goes away. It
00:14:22
will stick with you for the rest of your life. I still have questions
00:14:26
like, why didn't I see the signs? Like, why?
00:14:30
Why didn't they come to. Why didn't they speak up? I know now from my
00:14:34
own personal experience why,
00:14:37
But I don't know. Just don't be a dick, okay? Because
00:14:42
that's a good one. I'm sorry, but like, that, that's how it is.
00:14:46
Like, just don't be a dick to them. Like, they are grieving,
00:14:50
they've lost their person. And
00:14:54
when you lose your person, a part of you
00:14:58
goes away, too. And we're, you know, we're trying to
00:15:02
regroup and find the things that we can trust and
00:15:06
deal with our own emotions. Yeah. Yeah, you're right. And
00:15:10
I. I'm thinking of something that you just said, made me think about
00:15:14
the position that a lot of people who have survived
00:15:17
suicide loss, especially with a partner, especially with a spouse,
00:15:21
where you were a unit, you went and did all these things together.
00:15:26
I think the thing that people who are
00:15:30
engaging with those survivors are thinking is
00:15:35
let's get them out. I mean, a lot of cases, you know, some people back
00:15:38
away, other people are like, no, no, no, let's get them out and make them
00:15:42
social and introduce them and fill
00:15:46
their calendar. And while that's
00:15:49
incredibly kind and thoughtful in a lot of ways,
00:15:54
there's a big component of
00:15:57
isolation that really kind of in some ways needs to happen when someone
00:16:01
loses their partner because they have now got to
00:16:05
redefine themselves. They have an entirely new
00:16:08
identity. And you gotta give people
00:16:11
grace to. Because if they don't want to
00:16:15
go to the event, don't force them to go to the
00:16:19
event. Don't put them in a position of having to give you
00:16:23
an excuse or a reason or to fight with
00:16:27
you. Let them do what they need
00:16:30
to do at their own pace. Because let me tell
00:16:34
you something, if you're talking about grief
00:16:39
from the suicide loss perspective,
00:16:43
friends, that is a marathon and not a sprint.
00:16:47
Imagine a race that never, ever ends, okay? The
00:16:51
terrain just changes. That's what grief is,
00:16:54
especially grief attached to suicide loss.
00:16:58
Because let me tell you something. There are always things in
00:17:02
this world that you're going to see that you're going to hear, that you're going
00:17:05
to experience, that are going to trigger you. It could be five years out, it
00:17:09
could be 50 years out, and
00:17:12
you're in a pool of your own tears on the bathroom floor.
00:17:16
So the key here is be
00:17:21
gentle with the people. You've said it. You. You've already said it today.
00:17:25
Be gentle with the people who have lost someone and let them set
00:17:29
the pace. And that doesn't just go for people
00:17:32
that were partners. So that goes for people that were friends,
00:17:37
people that were co workers. Be kind, because
00:17:41
they're already dealing with it on their own terms
00:17:46
and they may not know how to, how to
00:17:50
handle it. And if they isolate for a little
00:17:54
bit, let them isolate. Maybe that is their way of dealing.
00:17:57
But if they do call, offer an ear
00:18:02
and don't judge. There's no room for
00:18:06
judging in the world of suicide. You
00:18:09
absolutely have zero idea what's going through somebody's head
00:18:13
when they get to that point. Yeah, that's such
00:18:17
an important point to make in any conversation
00:18:21
about suicide loss. Because people are very
00:18:25
quick to judge in life in general, not just with
00:18:28
this particular subject, but people
00:18:32
judge us for what we drive and where we live and
00:18:37
what we wear. And those things are bad enough.
00:18:41
When you start throwing your judgment around about
00:18:45
someone who has ended their life,
00:18:48
well, that is next level douchiness
00:18:52
that you just do not want to put out
00:18:56
into the world. Because there
00:19:00
is almost always a reason
00:19:04
that does not have anything to do with I
00:19:08
wanted to leave my people or I wanted to leave my life. There is a
00:19:11
deeper, darker reason. Suicide is the
00:19:15
byproduct of depression, which is a byproduct of
00:19:18
mental illness. So. So anybody who's going to make an
00:19:22
idiotic comment about someone
00:19:26
taking their life, having it be selfish, or why couldn't it be stopped?
00:19:30
You don't know unless you know what you're
00:19:33
talking about. So don't even make the comments.
00:19:38
So I have five things that are going to be helpful to say
00:19:42
and five things that you should avoid saying. Did you get that
00:19:46
off the help hub? No, I got it from another place.
00:19:50
Oh, good. But I'm just going to go ahead and say these and then we
00:19:54
can move on. If you're okay with that. I'm okay with anything you do.
00:19:57
Okay, so here's some helpful things you can say. I don't know what
00:20:01
to say, but I'm here for you. I can't imagine
00:20:05
what you're going through, but I care deeply. You don't have
00:20:08
to talk if you don't want to. I'm just here to sit with
00:20:12
you. Fourth is it's okay to
00:20:16
feel angry, confused, numb, or all of it.
00:20:20
And you're not alone. So those are like five
00:20:24
things you can say. All right, now these are the
00:20:27
ones that you shouldn't say because it's total dick move
00:20:31
on your part. There's they're in
00:20:35
a better place. Okay, that can really invalidate somebody's feelings.
00:20:39
Don't say that. That's. That one hurts. At least they're not
00:20:42
suffering anymore.
00:20:46
Everything happens for a reason. Oh, oh.
00:20:50
Did you see it coming? Were there signs? Okay, I'm going to tell
00:20:54
you, in my case, no and no.
00:20:58
And like, why would you even say that? But people do. But
00:21:01
people do. You've got to be strong, okay?
00:21:06
Grievers should not feel pressured just to perform strength,
00:21:10
okay? They went through something very, very, very difficult.
00:21:14
Be kind, be compassionate,
00:21:19
be understanding, be non
00:21:22
judgmental. That's what is helpful. Those
00:21:26
were. Those were incredibly helpful.
00:21:30
I live all these things. I. This is. This is my world. This is your
00:21:34
world. I couldn't have said it any better than you just said it. And that
00:21:37
was, I think, such a powerful takeaway that people can actually have. It's
00:21:41
so important. This is one of the things you and I try so hard to
00:21:44
do in every episode. We try to have the conversation. We try to put
00:21:48
the topic out there in the mainstream, but we're also trying really
00:21:52
hard to give you takeaways.
00:21:55
So if you're now in a situation where someone you know has lost
00:21:59
someone, maybe you'll rewind your brain a little bit
00:22:03
back to this conversation and remember a couple of the things G said to
00:22:06
say and not to say. And that will be helpful. So
00:22:11
yay for you doing that, because that was just so powerful.
00:22:14
Okay, can I give four ways that you can just show up for people?
00:22:18
Yes. Okay, so there's four ways you can just show
00:22:22
up. Just be there. You know, grief needs a witness, not
00:22:26
fixes. Just be there. Offer
00:22:29
specific help. Don't say, hey, if you need anything, let me know.
00:22:33
Instead, try. I'm headed to the store. Can I grab you some
00:22:36
groceries? Would it help if I walk your dog this week?
00:22:40
Do things like that. Respect their grief.
00:22:44
Not everybody wants to talk about it right away. Let
00:22:47
them guide that pace and remember the person
00:22:51
they lost. Say their name. You can say things like,
00:22:55
hey, I saw some sunflowers today and I thought of her smile.
00:22:59
Or I remember the time he made us all laugh until we cried.
00:23:04
Say their name. Just because they took their life
00:23:08
by suicide doesn't mean you can't still say their name.
00:23:12
It doesn't invalidate that life. Yes.
00:23:16
It's like how we shouldn't judge people by their worst
00:23:19
mistake. We also shouldn't judge people
00:23:24
by how their life ended
00:23:28
in the same way, you know.
00:23:32
And just stay curious, but not intrusive. Find out what
00:23:36
they need. Offer love. Don't pressure them to answer
00:23:39
questions that they may not be prepared or ever want to answer.
00:23:43
And listen more than you speak. Hold space.
00:23:47
You know, it's a very, very
00:23:51
gracious thing to just come right out and
00:23:54
ask someone who's lost someone, whether, whether it's to
00:23:58
suicide or to anything. Ask that person,
00:24:03
hey, would it help or would it hurt to talk about your
00:24:06
person right now? Yes, just that simple.
00:24:11
And I know in my case, and we talked about this in the last episode
00:24:14
where you and I were bawling our eyes out about how a friend of
00:24:18
mine on Father's Day shouted out a post to my father
00:24:22
specifically. And not many people in the world are left who knew my father
00:24:25
personally. And he is someone who did. And that was the
00:24:29
greatest gift in the world to have my
00:24:33
father be recognized in that way. And I know a lot of people feel that
00:24:35
way. So it's always gonna be a no harm, no foul situation
00:24:39
when you just ask if that's cool or not cool.
00:24:44
Yeah. And, you know, just be present and be human. Yeah.
00:24:48
Yeah. And, and one, one last thing before,
00:24:51
before we kind of wrap this conversation is that
00:24:55
we've talked a lot about ways in which we can have the
00:24:59
hard conversations, how to show up for your people.
00:25:03
If you don't have someone in your life,
00:25:07
if you don't have a community or a partner or a family or a
00:25:11
support system, you're still. You're still never alone.
00:25:15
There are always hotlines. The
00:25:19
one that comes to mind that we talk about in every episode that we record
00:25:22
is of course, the 988 crisis suicide hotline. That
00:25:25
is not just for people who are feeling suicidal. That is for
00:25:29
anyone who is experiencing any kind of
00:25:32
mental stress, strain, anxiety,
00:25:36
homelessness, abuse, loneliness, you
00:25:40
name it. Anything goes to call 988.
00:25:44
You do not have to be suicidal. But there, there are support
00:25:47
groups. If you don't have your own personal support group,
00:25:51
they're virtual. I know I personally moderate a
00:25:55
group the first and the third Wednesday of every month
00:25:59
through Samaritan south coast here in Boston called Safe Place Place.
00:26:03
And we can put that in the show notes. It is a very specific kind
00:26:06
of group. It's for survivors of suicide loss and I moderate that.
00:26:10
And that's a virtual group. There are plenty of in person groups.
00:26:14
Seek out a trauma informed therapist. That is a big
00:26:18
deal. When you're talking about a therapist who understands trauma
00:26:21
versus one who doesn't. That is a game changer in terms of the kind
00:26:25
of conversations you're going to have and, and, and also
00:26:28
storytelling, just the act of being in places where you
00:26:32
can share your story. Maybe it's over social media, maybe
00:26:36
it's in a group, maybe it's over the phone, maybe it's
00:26:40
journaling. There are a million different ways that you can do that to help you
00:26:43
process your loss. Do that, seek those things out or
00:26:47
seek out a friend that you know has lost someone. If, if you have
00:26:51
someone like that in your life to have that kind of a connection with. Because
00:26:54
it's a next level conversation when you know that you're talking to somebody who has
00:26:58
experienced the same thing that you've experienced. And
00:27:02
I think the bottom line to all of this is that
00:27:06
connection helps us feel less alone
00:27:10
and it helps us to heal. It's
00:27:14
as simple as that. You know, grieving,
00:27:17
grieving at all sucks. Grieving after suicide
00:27:21
sucks. It's messy, it's traumatic,
00:27:25
but we can still heal from it. And
00:27:28
we do that when we stop healing by ourselves. And we,
00:27:32
we reach out to the, to the places and the people around. Us who are
00:27:36
there, you know, and life is short.
00:27:41
So make those conversations matter. Not just for you,
00:27:45
but for the person who's truly grieving. Approach it with kindness
00:27:50
and hold space. That's all we've got
00:27:54
and I hope it's enough. But we'll be back.
00:27:58
I guarantee it. We'll be back next week to do it all over again. We
00:28:01
sure will. I love you, boo. Love you. Bye bye.
00:28:08
Thanks for joining us on the Survivors. Remember, no matter how tough things
00:28:12
feel, you are enough and the world needs you just the way you are.
00:28:16
You're not alone in this journey. There's a community here and every step forward
00:28:19
counts. We're so grateful you took the time to listen and we hope you'll
00:28:23
take one day at a time. Just know there's always more light ahead.
00:28:28
Thanks for being here, friends. Just remember, help is out there
00:28:32
in so many different places. So if you or someone you know is struggling,
00:28:36
please call 988 and a. Trained crisis counselor like me will be
00:28:40
there to help. You can also find an inclusive and. Comprehensive directory of
00:28:43
mental health resources, tools and content at
00:28:46
thehelphub.co. Just remember that help is always
00:28:50
just. A call or a click away. We'll catch you next week. In the
00:28:53
meantime, keep surviving.
