Residing in the United Kingdom, Author Caroline Roodhouse is a mother, writer, lifelong learner, strategic communicator, and speaker on mental health and bereavement due to suicide. The suicide of a loved one can be emotionally devastating. Your grief may be heart-wrenching, and emotions can become overwhelming. Understanding the complex legacy of suicide and learning how to cope with intense grief can aid in healing, while still honoring your loved one's memory.

Grief is a natural response to loss. It’s the emotional suffering you feel when something or someone you love is taken away. Often, the pain of loss can feel overwhelming. You may experience a range of complex and unexpected emotions, including shock, anger, disbelief, guilt, and profound sadness.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), globally, more than 720,000 men, women, and children die by suicide each year, impacting almost 1 billion people directly bereaved or known to those who died.

Eight years ago, my world shattered. My fiancé, Olivier, died by suicide just weeks before our wedding. We were living together in France, far from English-speaking support services, and left in grief, shock, and isolation. Losing someone to suicide is unlike any other kind of loss. It leaves you with unanswered questions, deep pain, and often an unbearable silence from the world around you.