Research into the experiences of men bereaved by suicide
Welcome
Thank you for visiting my site. My name is Jo and I am currently doing a Masters in Integrative Psychotherapy at the University of Roehampton in the UK. For my thesis, I am researching the experiences of men who have been bereaved by suicide.
I am researching how men bereaved by suicide experience their loss, and if they are able to make sense or derive some meaning from it. Prior research shows that people who are able to derive some meaning after a loss may cope better, but limited research has been done on suicide loss – and even less on men who have lost someone to suicide.
I hope that my research will inform counsellors and other support groups or helpers who are supporting men bereaved by suicide. I also hope it will inform future research, and help build the evidence base about how men experience suicide bereavement so that helpers can support them better.
In the UK and Northern Ireland, there were 6,213 suicides in 2017 (Samaritans, 2018). Suicide is the leading cause of death for men under 50 in the UK. Those at highest risk are men aged between 40 and 44 years who have a rate of 24.1 deaths per 100,000 population (Mental Health Foundation, 2018). People who are more closely linked to someone who has died by suicide are at also higher risk of suicide themselves. Many research studies on this area involve women: because of this, and the elevated risk factors for men, I am focusing on men who have been bereaved by suicide for this study.
Do you have a story to share?
I am looking for 8 men who are willing to share their experiences and take part in individual interviews with me. I would like to speak to men who have been bereaved by male suicide, who are also:
aged between 18 and 75.
speak English.
have lost someone close to them to suicide.
Your story will be kept confidential and will be completely anonymised – your name will not be used in any reports or publications resulting from the study. Interviews will take place between February and April 2019. Interviews can either be face to face or over Skype/Facetime/WhatsApp, depending on your preference.
I would like you to share your story with me, but given the highly personal and intimate nature of the topic, only if you feel completely comfortable to do so. You are under no obligation to take part. Personal experiences of suicide are intimate and complex, it is completely your decision as to whether you feel comfortable sharing your story. Given the sensitive nature of the project it is vital that you feel at ease at all points of the process. If you do take part, you are able to withdraw at any time should you decide you are no longer happy to proceed.
To Take Part: Click Here
Since losing our son Jonathan to suicide in May 2011, we have done quite a lot of fundraising. We have held boot sales, stalls at fetes, skydives and many, many raffles.
In 2005 we tragically lost Fee – beloved wife and mother, when she took her own life. The shock and loss was enormous and it wasn’t until 2009 when we discovered Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide. This charity has helped all three of us, in different ways, in coming to terms with such a painful loss. It is a loss that you never get over, but their involvement in our lives has helped us to move on but not forget.