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!
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On July 24th I’ll be hosting Suzanne O’Brien RN for a free webinar titled: “End-of-Life Doula Training for Caregivers and Volunteers.” Join us if you’re interested in learning more about the work of end-of-life doulas to see if further training might be of interest to you. You’ll learn valuable skills for caring for those at the end of life no matter what type of work you do. Sign up at the link below:
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This episode is sponsored by my book: 
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As always, support for this podcast comes from my donation page at 
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You can support this podcast by making a small donation of $1 or $2 at 
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Check out my new blog series on Grief Travel and learn some tips for planning travel to help with grief. Go to 
Thank you so much to all of my Patrons who have made donations on 
Each month I host a “Virtual Death Cafe” with fascinating conversations about death, grief and the end of life. Anyone can join by telephone or online. You can learn more about it at 
This podcast is supported through the generous donations of my patrons on 
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I am especially grateful for all of my supporters on 
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Dr. Linda Backman will be offering a FREE webinar on November 18th: How to Heal Through Past Life Exploration. In this webinar you’ll learn:
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This podcast is generously supported through your donations at 
In this episode I share a powerful and heartfelt interview with Ken Wilber where we discuss the subject of 
I’m still in Italy as this broadcast airs but will be returning to Colorado in a few days. Check out the photos from my last days of travel on 
As always this podcast is made possible through your generous donations at 
In this brief episode I share an essay I wrote on the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks that is still relevant today. Join me in sending prayers of light and love to all who have been affected by the tragedy of 9/11, by the recent natural disasters around the planet and by war and famine wherever they occur.
My trip to Italy is just around the corner! Check out my travel plans on 
A huge THANK YOU to my latest supporters on 
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This podcast is supported through the generous donations of “patrons” who chip in $1 or $2 per month to help cover the costs of production. A HUGE thank you to all of you who are helping out! Our next Hospice Happy Hour will take place on Friday August 25th (you’ll receive all the information by email.) If you’d like to become a donor go to 
