Postvention refers to the actions taken to support the community after someone dies by suicide. Good postvention support can help people to grieve and recover and can be a critical element of preventing further suicides from happening.
There is no single or right way to respond to a suicide. All organisations and communities have different needs and the individual circumstances will need to be taken into account. Good postvention plans are based on principles and key actions which enable the appropriate decisions and actions for the circumstances and which ensure that timely and appropriate care and support is provided.
We can assist you and your organisation with developing your postvention plan – see our section on education and training to find out more about this.
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.