Study Investigates Bereavement Following Suicide Loss
CTMH researchers recently published a study titled “The impact of relationship type and closeness on mental health following suicide loss”. This study investigates how relationship type and closeness levels impact a person’s bereavement reaction when someone they know dies by suicide. They found that family status, friend status, and closeness were all associated with mental health symptoms such as prolonged grief, depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder after a suicide loss. Interestingly, the magnitude of associations for closeness and mental health symptoms was stronger than those observed for familial status and mental health symptoms (as well as friend status and mental health symptoms). The results suggest that closeness levels to a decedent may impact a suicide bereavement reaction more than relationship type, but more research needs to be done to assess the complexities of these suicide bereavement reactions. The full paper is available here.