Listen to a personal and intimate conversation about suicide death and how to cope with the aftermath as a survivor.
My guest Sarah Neustadter PhD was studying psychology in graduate school when her boyfriend, a fellow student in the program, chose to end his life. Ten years later she has written a book to guide others through the complicated grief that follows suicide. In this conversation we share our own stories of grief and find insights together that we hope will be helpful to others on this path. Learn more about Sarah’s work at her website:
This interview includes:
- Why no amount of training can prepare you for the suicide death of a loved one
- How grief after suicide differs from other types of grief
- The stigmatization of suicide death in our society
- How devastating guilt and regret follow a suicide
- Why suicide survivors need to work on self-forgiveness
- What might help on the journey of post-suicide grief:
- Community
- Physical touch or holding
- Support with mundane tasks of daily life
- Frequent check-ins from friends
- Presence from others rather than words
- Acknowledgment of the pain – even months and years later
- Grief has its own timeline and can’t be rushed through
- How writing can help us process grief and other difficult emotions
- Sarah’s 3 categories of her own grief process:
- Despair
- Shifting
- Beauty
Links mentioned in this episode:
- Sarah’s website
- Sarah’s Book: Love You Like the Sky
- National Suicide Prevention Lifeline – 1-800-273-8255
- The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
- Art of Dying Author Series with Karen Wyatt MD – September 6, 2019 – Open Center, NYC
- Workshop: Earth Lessons for the Soul – September 7, 2019 – Open Center, NY
- Beautiful Dying Expo – November 2-3, 2019, San Diego CA
- Join the team at Patreon.com/eolu and get access to the EOLU mug: “Mind if we talk about death?” (only Patrons can purchase it)
If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes! Thanks again to all supporters on Patreon.com/eolu – your contributions mean everything to me!
If you are currently experiencing a crisis or feeling hopeless please know that you are not alone. Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline for free and confidential support available 24/7 for people in distress: 
