I'm writing a book on suicide loss

I was 10 years old when my mom died. I remember being handed a journal and some children’s books on grief. Nothing quite captured the unique loss of su*cide loss though. Then 15 years later, I was older, my brain was (mostly) developed, and I was really beginning to unpack my mom’s death. I walked into a book store, bought a couple of books and remember feeling underwhelmed by them. In some ways I appreciated reading the experiences of others – like we were all a part of the same sh*tty club and at least we weren’t alone, but I mostly found the books to be unrelatable and outdated. There were books on grief, but not specifically su*cide loss, or books on suicide loss from either the perspective of someone with lived experience or the perspective of somebody with “expertise”, but the author never played both roles. And as a survivor, I wanted that.

Not exactly bragging rights anyone wants – “my mom died by suicide - YAY for trauma!”, but in the spirit of post-traumatic growth, I’m grateful for the work I have done and now for the space I get to hold for others.

For every suicide, it's estimated that at least 135 people are affected. That's millions of people impacted by suicide loss every year.