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Those They Left Behind: Interviews, Stories, Essays and Poems by Survivors of Suicide

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"Those Left Behind" is dedicated to survivors, those loved ones and family members left behind to experience their own personal tragedy and despair in the process of grieving after a loved one's completed suicide. Dr. Bryson has compiled the results of interviews with survivors of multiple suicides, of those who have lost sons and daughters, and of those who have lost parents, spouses, significant others, siblings, relatives and friends.

Each account contains a brief note of the contributor's age and current occupation. Then in their own words they relate the circumstances behind their loss, how they dealt with the bereavement process, any dreams or unusual occurrences, helpful coping methods, and a brief comment of advice or words of wisdom.

Many of those who shared their story told of the importance of support groups while dealing with the felt guilt, shame and stigma that so often accompanies the aftershock of suicide. These support groups helped the survivors deal with the questions of "what if", "why", and the remorse of "if only I had".

Others told of the importance of counseling both professional and spiritual. While hurting, feeling alone, and confused most experienced the insensitivity of well meaning people unable to identify with the suffering caused by the loss. They told of losing friends and ending close relationships.

Many described the initial shock and complete devastation they experienced. Others shared how they discovered a new awareness of the transient nature of things and the importance of not taking loved ones and life for granted.

I was especially drawn to those who shared a new found faith in God, or a deepening of their spiritual life. Nearly everyone felt an important part of their healing was being enabled and empowered to help others going through the same or similar experiences.

I was particularly impressed with the advice of one writer who summed it up this way, "The one thing I learned is there is no timeline in grieving. What you are feeling is okay. Do not try to be at a certain point in the process by a certain date/year. Let people help, you probably need it."

A young nun wrote, after the loss of her brother, "Eugene's life and death continue to invite me to a deeper understanding of my own pilgrimage in life."

Dr. Bryson has done an outstanding job of interviewing, editing and recording these stories, essays, and poems from the survivors of suicide.
This is an important book for any if the over 300,000 individuals who each year are impacted by the loss of a loved one through suicide. "Those Left Behind" should be on the reading list of everyone involved as a crisis intervention provider. The book is an excellent resource tool for first responders, trauma personnel, chaplains, ministers, and professional counselors. It should be made available to all mortuary personnel, and to all law enforcement officers.

Shocking, gut-wrenching, disturbing, sad. These are the words that describe the true life events for the suvivors of a loved one who has completed suicide. Bryson has vividly put together their stories and the turmoil of how each person has survived and gone forward after the tragedy that has invaded their lives. Hopefully this book will enlighted those who have not been touched by suicide and help those who know that they "are not alone" in their grief.

This had to be a hard book to put together. It is a hard book to read, but also it is a comforting one. The subject of suicide is never easy to think about. For those whose lives are touched by the actions of family or loved ones it is more than painful.

Author Karen Mueller Bryson knows this first hand. In the introduction to this collection she shares that her own life was permanently changed and molded by the suicide of her father when she was twenty-five.

Bryson is acutely aware of the statistics about suicide--each year in the United States more than 30,000 people choose to take their own lives. These actions profoundly change the lives of many more--those who are left behind--the focus of this collection. She chose to go beyond statistics to the "real person...writing about their experiences with tragedy and despair."

When Bryson began her search for suicide survivors (her term for those left behind) she was uncertain what the response would be. She recounts the overwhelming response. People want to tell their stories, to share their pain, and to heal in the process.

This book contains the stories of more than fifty people who have struggled with this loss. As I said, it is not an easy book to read. We ache through the stories of Ann, a woman who lost both her husband, who was 39, and almost twenty years later, her 29 year-old son, or Tracy, whose 16 year-old son took his life with a deer rifle. The losses are staggering. This is indeed tragedy, but it is also hope. As the stories unfold, there is comfort. People do indeed survive and go on with meaningful lives.

This book will be invaluable for those who have shared these tragic circumstances, but it is not for them alone. Any compassionate reader will gain from the honesty and love that imbues the stories.

Bryson has done a great service by gathering and sharing these stories. As she says in the introduction, "it helps us to read the stories of others--to know that we are not alone in our despair."
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An extremely informative book and one easily related to for those who have experienced such a tragedy. I was especially drawn to the chapter on Mothers and Fathers. I lost my own father to suicide and could easily find myself within this chapter. The memory stays as fresh and vivid in my mind as it it were only a few days ago instead of over 40 years. There is a chapter for everyone to relate to; siblings, relatives, etc. A much needed book for those of us who have been touched by suicide.

According to the American Association of Suicidology, more than 32,000 people complete suicide annually which affects at least ten other individuals (family, friends, co-workers, etc.)--frightening statistics at best in an age where help is supposedly just a phone call away.

Through interviews with suicide survivors, Karen Mueller Bryson, Ph.D., a National Certified Counselor brings tragic life stories of more than 50 contributors who openly discuss their most private thoughts and feelings in_Those They Left Behind_. Bryson's interviews focused on: In his/her words(here the contributor provides background information regarding their relationship with the person who completed suicide); The suicide; The bereavement process; Have you ever considered taking your own life; Dreams and unusual occurrences; Significance of the suicide; Helpful coping methods, and Advice or words of wisdom.

For those seeking additional resources or guidance, _Those They Left Behind_ does not offer these insights and readers are left to look elsewhere. Perhaps the best place to start is with the American Association of Suicidology which serves as a national clearinghouse for information on suicide. Other websites that may prove helpful are the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, and Survivors of Suicide.

Aptly titled, _Those They Left Behind_ will offer support to suicide survivors and provide a platform for people to share their stories while building reader awareness and understanding.

I found reading the various stories in Dr. Mueller Bryson's first non-fiction book "Those They Left Behind" compellingly sad. As a suicide survivor and having read many, many books on suicide, I found this book perhaps healing for those who are telling the story, the book as a whole was not particularly healing for one, who has experienced the loss of someone. One story in particular in her book "Keening in Bangor" was especially offensive to me. I had known the two young girls she wrote about. The author of this short story, Carolyn Gage, a Lesbian Activist, author, and playwright did not know the two girls she wrote about. Ms. Gage took a tragic event and contrived a story so sensational that it should be considered libelous. I not only would question Mueller Bryson's accuracy of any of her stories in this book but more seriously should be questioning the credibility of any of Ms. Gages work.