I've lost someone
You are not alone. Suicide affects millions each year, and thanks to our donors and volunteers—many of whom are loss survivors themselves—we can provide these resources to help you heal.
Living with Suicide Loss
Healing Conversations:
Personal Support for Survivors of Suicide Loss
Healing Conversations gives survivors of suicide loss the opportunity to speak with volunteers, who are themselves loss survivors.
International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day
Each year, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention supports hundreds of large and small events around the world, in which survivors of suicide loss come together to find connection, understanding, and hope through their shared experience.
Find a support group
The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention lists U.S. and international support groups as a public service. We do not run, recommend, endorse or fund any of the groups listed.
Digital Memory Quilt
The quilt was created in memory of lost loved ones.
Surviving a Suicide Loss
Our Resource and Healing Guide that provides information about coping with loss, the survivor loss community, and resources to help with your journey.
Children, Teens and Suicide Loss
View the booklet Children, Teens and Suicide Loss
Sobreviviendo una pérdida por suicidio
Real stories about loss
Long-Term Survivors of Suicide Loss Summit
Niños, adolescentes y perdidas por suicidio
View the booklet Children, Teens and Suicide Loss
Talking to others about what happened
You may be hesitant to share with others that your loved one took their own life. While we cannot determine what is right for you, in the long run most survivors are glad that they decided to be honest about the facts of the death.
Taking care of yourself
It is imperative that you take care of yourself physically, emotionally, and spiritually. No matter how you deal with your grief, you should not have to cope with your loss alone; be open to letting people help you live through this experience.
International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day documentaries
Each year a documentary about suicide loss is included as part of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention's International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day. Previous documentaries can be found here.
Lifekeeper Memory Quilts
The quilts put a human face on the tragedy of suicide and its toll on families and communities. If you've lost a loved one to suicide, you may want to bring family and friends together to create an AFSP Lifekeeper Memory Quilt panel to remember them.
Suicide bereavement trained clinicians
One goal of the Suicide Bereavement Clinician Training program is to provide those who have lost a loved one to suicide with a list of clinicians who are knowledgeable about bereavement after suicide and able to provide grief therapy for survivors.
Practical information for immediately after a loss
Books for loss survivors
A listing of books from which we hope loss survivors will find helpful information and guidance as they navigate their healing journey.
A Manager's Guide to Suicide Postvention in the Workplace
Download A Manager's Guide to Suicide Postvention in the Workplace
After a Suicide: A Toolkit for Schools
After a Suicide: A Toolkit for Schools offers best practices and practical tools to help schools in the aftermath of a suicide.
Postvention: A Guide for Response to Suicide on College Campuses
Download Postvention: A Guide for Response to Suicide on College Campuses
Healing Milestones - Recognizing Complicated Grief
Healing Milestones - Recognizing Complicated Grief
After a Suicide: A Guide for Veterinary Workplaces
After a Suicide: A Guide for Veterinary Workplaces provides guidance and tools for postvention.