Parental Bereavement following the Suicide Death of a Young Adult Child: An Overview for Counsellors

In defining suicide death, the 1972 Penguin Medical Encyclopaedia refers to rational suicides as being exceptionally rare and indicates that suicide should be regarded as the final symptom in an illness or group of illnesses. How suicide is distinguished, the author continues, is the 'patient's feeling - perhaps unfounded - that he is cut off from the society or background he regards as his' (p. 425). While we no longer view suicide as a symptom of illness (although this may sometimes be the case), we now have the benefit of extensive research into risk signs attributable to suicide, which has provided valuable preventative knowledge. This 30 year-old definition of the cause of suicide referring to disconnectedness (whether real or perceived), however, can still apply to both the individual deceased through suicide and those grieving their death. While important advances in understanding risk signs related to suicide have been made in the last 30 years, this has not translated into a significant decrease in the numbers of suicide occurring in Australia. Research to assist in reducing the number of people who die each year to suicide is vital. However, those bereaved through the suicide death of a loved one have received little attention, their experience remaining somewhat unknown. Recent research examining the bereavement experience of parents who have lost a young adult child to suicide revealed three main areas that deserve attention (Maple, 2005).