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Suicide is the worst possible death imaginable. One minute the person you love is there and the next minute they're gone. They're gone of their own choice and this is something that is so very hard to deal with. You are left with unanswered questions, guilt that you didn't notice something was wrong, guilt that you didn't stop it, anger at the person for leaving you, and so much more.

When someone takes their own life the grieving process takes a lot longer. There is no comfort, no answers, and worst of all the stigma that is attached to suicide makes it extremely difficult to talk about.

If you know someone who has lost a loved one through suicide you probably won't know what to do. Yes you can say you are sorry for their loss but believe me this really won't help. If you really want to help someone cope with the suicide of a loved one you need to be able to listen. You need to be non-judgemental, and most of all, never under any circumstances ask them if they know why.

Anyone who has lost someone through suicide will not know why. This is a question that will plague them for the rest of their lives. You should never ask them if noticed anything different about their loved one or try to come to any conclusions about their death. This will only help to make things worse.

All you can really do if you want to help someone is to be there, be a friend, listen, and provide support when they need it. Be there to help them remember the good things about their loved one. This might be difficult to do at first. The person may be feeling a lot of anger towards their loved one and may not want to be reminded of the good times. Under no circumstances should you agree or disagree with the way they are feeling. If they are angry let them be angry, let them talk it out. Don't get angry yourself because when the anger phase passes for them they will remember the bad things you said and they might hold them against you.

If you can get them to see a counsellor then do so. They will always cope better and come to terms with what has happened if they can speak to a professional suicide bereavement counsellor.

In the end all you can do is be there to listen, to provide support, and to help in anyway that you can.

Suicide is not something that is easy to come to terms with and if you have never suffered a loss by suicide it is something that you won't be able to understand.

Most people think that those who commit suicide are selfish, uncaring people, and this can be so wrong. If you would really like to help someone to cope with the suicide of a loved one I would like to recommend a book titled "From Those Death Left Behind" which is available from lulu.com. This is a book that I wrote with members of my family in memory of my father who committed suicide. In this book we all share our stories about who suicide effected us and it is hoped that this book can promote suicide awareness and help others.

Learn more about this author, Amanda Evans.
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