Läheisen itsemurha ja minuus

Authors

• Mikko Lounela .

Abstract

Suicide of a loved one has multiple influences on person’s life and her self-image. One perspective to these influences is to look at them through the person’s field (or social network). Traumatic loss leaves a hole in the field and may break many indirect links in the network in addition to the immediate one that is lost by death. In addition, the stigmatizing effect of suicide may damage the social field in its entirety. Assuming that human self is (partly) function of the social field, this has direct consequences on the self of the person suffering the loss.

One of human beings’ basic psychological needs is to maintain a meaningful image of her own continuum of life, including memories of the past, current moment and visions of the future. Many times, suicide of a close person makes a breakage in this continuum. The bridge between past and future breaks, belief in meaningful living is severely challenged. This is another way how traumatic loss has an impact on self-image.

Rebuilding the social network and the image of life-continuum can be seen as major parts of grief process. In this work, crisis therapy, peer support work and psychotherapy can have their own, partly overlapping but clearly distinct roles.