Where To Begin After A Suicide


Survivors of Suicide Loss Support Group - Madison, NJ

Right after you lose a loved one to suicide it can be a confusing and complex time. There are legal, financial and many, many emotional issues that you face. Here are a number of resources to help you start to sort out what has happened to you and how you can begin to move forward. Joining a suicide loss survivors group is often a great first step towards understanding your loss and the grief that follows.

  • Where Do I Begin?

    • Resource: Webpage

    • Summary: American Foundation for Suicide Prevention entry page for newly bereaved. Why did this happen? After losing someone to suicide, you may find yourself asking over and over again, "Why?" Suicide is complicated, but from research we know a lot about it.

  • Peer Support for Survivors of Suicide Loss

    • Resource: Webpage

    • Summary: AFSP offers resources to help loss survivors cope, connect, and heal in time. Our trained peer support volunteers are all suicide loss survivors who know firsthand how difficult it can be to find your way in the aftermath of a suicide. Upon request, they are available to speak with you by phone, in person (limited availability), by video call (Google Hangout, Skype, Facetime), or via email.

  • Join a Survivors of Suicide Loss Support Group

    • Resource: Webpage

    • Summary: Joining a suicide loss support group is often one of the most helpful steps for survivors. You will have the opportunity to meet others who have also survived a suicide death of a loved one and can share how that have found hope an healing after their loss. They are generally free to attend and there are hundreds of groups across the country. For more information about our meeting in Madison, NJ click here.

  • Tips for The Newly Bereaved After Suicide

    • Resource: Webpage

    • Summary: Twelve tips about dealing with suicide grief. Grieving is a unique, lonely, extremely painful process with each individual working through their own space at their own pace, but it is comforting to know what helped others who have experienced the anguish in the aftermath of a loved one's suicide.

  • 15 Things I Wish I Knew About Grief

    • Resource: 1 page PDF

    • Summary: A list of fifteen things the author wished she knew about grief when she started grieving the loss of her loved one. Her lessons learned and mistakes to avoid.

  • Survivors of Suicide Loss Fact Sheet (2014)

    • Resource: 2 page PDF

    • Summary: American Association of Suicidology sheet discussing suicide grief

  • Suggestions for Helping Yourself Survive

    • Resource: 3 page Word Document

    • Summary: This is a checklist of 44 ideas about helping you to understand what has happened and how you personally begin to heal after a suicide loss.

  • Suggestions for Coping as a Family

    • Resource: 1 page Word document

    • Summary: This document is a quick read about how a family heals and ideas to move through your loss together.

  • In Times of Grief and Loss - A Family Manifesto

  • Beyond Surviving: Suggestions for Survivors

    • Resource: 1 page PDF

    • Summary: This one page list of ideas discusses not only how you will survive after a suicide, but it discusses ideas about how you can thrive as well.

  • Surviving A Suicide Loss: A Resource And Healing Guide

    • Resource: 46 page PDF

    • Summary: This detailed guide from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention walks the survivors through the process of understanding suicide and how the healing process generally works. It has numerous suggestions of other places to find assistance after losing a loved one to suicide.

  • Surviving a Suicide Loss: A Financial Guide

    • Resource: 35 page PDF

    • Summary: This detailed guide from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention walks the survivors through the different financial and legal impacts of losing a loved one to suicide. It is a workbook with forms to fill out and suggestions on where to begin.

  • What to Do When a Loved One Dies

    • Resource: Webpage

    • Summary: When a loved one dies, you might face the overwhelming responsibility of closing out the person's life. There are many things to attend to, from providing a proper tribute to closing bank accounts to canceling a gym membership. And many of the tasks require attention to detail — adding stress to what is already a pretty emotional time.

  • What to Do When the Police Leave : A Guide to the First Days of Traumatic Loss -- Third Edition

Author: Bill Jenkins

ISBN: 0966760018

    • Resource: 160 page Book

    • Summary: Written by a victim for other victims and their caregivers, this book offers authoritative and invaluable advice, guidance, and resources for families dealing with the traumatic loss of a family member or friend. New to this edition are sections on crime scene cleanup, unsolved cases, grief in the workplace, a new chapter entitled "Long-Term Grief: Living The Marathon," and a Foreword by best-selling author Patricia Cornwell. Finalist in the category of Best First Book in the Publishers Marketing Association's Benjamin Franklin Awards 2000, "What To Do When The Police Leave" is being used by victim assistance programs, clergy, funeral homes, and police departments across North America as they work with and serve the bereaved. It is recognized as one of the most valuable resources available for grieving families. This one of a kind resource is heart-to-heart practical advice from one who has been through the trenches of grief and loss, encouraging and helping others in their own paths. The victims' voice has never spoken so clearly.