Those They Left Behind: Interviews, Stories, Essays and Poems by Survivors of Suicide
Product Description
In this collection of interviews with survivors of suicide, individuals talk candidly and intimately about how their lives have been impacted by the suicide of a family member or close friend. Over 50 individuals were willing to share their personal tragedies as a way of helping others who face a similar loss as well as educating the public about the issues survivors of suicide face. Their willingness to share their stories is a testament to their endurance and stre… More >>
Those They Left Behind: Interviews, Stories, Essays and Poems by Survivors of Suicide
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I found reading the various stories in Dr. Mueller Bryson’s first non-fiction book “Those They Left Behind” compellingly sad. As a suicide survivor and having read many, many books on suicide, I found this book perhaps healing for those who are telling the story, the book as a whole was not particularly healing for one, who has experienced the loss of someone. One story in particular in her book “Keening in Bangor” was especially offensive to me. I had known the two young girls she wrote about. The author of this short story, Carolyn Gage, a Lesbian Activist, author, and playwright did not know the two girls she wrote about. Ms. Gage took a tragic event and contrived a story so sensational that it should be considered libelous. I not only would question Mueller Bryson’s accuracy of any of her stories in this book but more seriously should be questioning the credibility of any of Ms. Gages work.
Rating: 1 / 5
According to the American Association of Suicidology, more than 32,000 people complete suicide annually which affects at least ten other individuals (family, friends, co-workers, etc.)–frightening statistics at best in an age where help is supposedly just a phone call away.
Through interviews with suicide survivors, Karen Mueller Bryson, Ph.D., a National Certified Counselor brings tragic life stories of more than 50 contributors who openly discuss their most private thoughts and feelings in_Those They Left Behind_. Bryson’s interviews focused on: In his/her words(here the contributor provides background information regarding their relationship with the person who completed suicide); The suicide; The bereavement process; Have you ever considered taking your own life; Dreams and unusual occurrences; Significance of the suicide; Helpful coping methods, and Advice or words of wisdom.
For those seeking additional resources or guidance, _Those They Left Behind_ does not offer these insights and readers are left to look elsewhere. Perhaps the best place to start is with the American Association of Suicidology which serves as a national clearinghouse for information on suicide. Other websites that may prove helpful are the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, and Survivors of Suicide.
Aptly titled, _Those They Left Behind_ will offer support to suicide survivors and provide a platform for people to share their stories while building reader awareness and understanding.
Rating: 4 / 5
This had to be a hard book to put together. It is a hard book to read, but also it is a comforting one. The subject of suicide is never easy to think about. For those whose lives are touched by the actions of family or loved ones it is more than painful.
Author Karen Mueller Bryson knows this first hand. In the introduction to this collection she shares that her own life was permanently changed and molded by the suicide of her father when she was twenty-five.
Bryson is acutely aware of the statistics about suicide–each year in the United States more than 30,000 people choose to take their own lives. These actions profoundly change the lives of many more–those who are left behind–the focus of this collection. She chose to go beyond statistics to the “real person…writing about their experiences with tragedy and despair.”
When Bryson began her search for suicide survivors (her term for those left behind) she was uncertain what the response would be. She recounts the overwhelming response. People want to tell their stories, to share their pain, and to heal in the process.
This book contains the stories of more than fifty people who have struggled with this loss. As I said, it is not an easy book to read. We ache through the stories of Ann, a woman who lost both her husband, who was 39, and almost twenty years later, her 29 year-old son, or Tracy, whose 16 year-old son took his life with a deer rifle. The losses are staggering. This is indeed tragedy, but it is also hope. As the stories unfold, there is comfort. People do indeed survive and go on with meaningful lives.
This book will be invaluable for those who have shared these tragic circumstances, but it is not for them alone. Any compassionate reader will gain from the honesty and love that imbues the stories.
Bryson has done a great service by gathering and sharing these stories. As she says in the introduction, “it helps us to read the stories of others–to know that we are not alone in our despair.”
[...]
Rating: 5 / 5
An extremely informative book and one easily related to for those who have experienced such a tragedy. I was especially drawn to the chapter on Mothers and Fathers. I lost my own father to suicide and could easily find myself within this chapter. The memory stays as fresh and vivid in my mind as it it were only a few days ago instead of over 40 years. There is a chapter for everyone to relate to; siblings, relatives, etc. A much needed book for those of us who have been touched by suicide.
Rating: 5 / 5
Shocking, gut-wrenching, disturbing, sad. These are the words that describe the true life events for the suvivors of a loved one who has completed suicide. Bryson has vividly put together their stories and the turmoil of how each person has survived and gone forward after the tragedy that has invaded their lives. Hopefully this book will enlighted those who have not been touched by suicide and help those who know that they “are not alone” in their grief.
Rating: 5 / 5