What are the physical and psychological health effects of suicide bereavement on family members? An observational and interview mixed-methods study in Ireland.
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Objectives Research focussing on the impact of suicide bereavement on family members’ physical and psychological health is scarce. The aim of this study was to examine how family members have been physically and psychologically affected following suicide bereavement. A secondary objective of the study was to describe the needs of family members bereaved by suicide. Design A mixed-methods study was conducted, using qualitative semistructured interviews and additional quantitative self-report measures of depression, anxiety and stress (DASS-21). Setting Consecutive suicide cases and next-of-kin were identified by examining coroner’s records in Cork City and County, Ireland from October 2014 to May 2016. Participants Eighteen family members bereaved by suicide took part in a qualitative interview. They were recruited from the Suicide Support and Information System: A Case-Control Study (SSIS-ACE), where family members bereaved by suicide (n=33) completed structured measures of their well-being. Results Qualitative findings indicated three superordinate themes in relation to experiences following suicide bereavement: (1) co-occurrence of grief and health reactions; (2) disparity in supports after suicide and (3) reconstructing life after deceased’s suicide. Initial feelings of guilt, blame, shame and anger often manifested in enduring physical, psychological and psychosomatic difficulties. Support needs were diverse and were often related to the availability or absence of informal support by family or friends. Quantitative results indicated that the proportion of respondents above the DASS-21 cut-offs respectively were 24% for depression, 18% for anxiety and 27% for stress. Conclusions Healthcare professionals’ awareness of the adverse physical and psychosomatic health difficulties experienced by family members bereaved by suicide is essential. Proactively facilitating support for this group could help to reduce the negative health sequelae. The effects of suicide bereavement are wide-ranging, including high levels of stress, depression, anxiety and physical health difficulties.
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Research has largely focused on suicide risk among bereaved relatives, though less is known about how many people are exposed and need support in the broader household or about their overall mortality risk from nonsuicide causes.
“Research has largely focused on suicide risk among bereaved relatives,2,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22,23,24,25 though less is known about how many people are exposed and need support in the broader household19 or about their overall mortality risk from nonsuicide causes.9,26,27,28”
From Mortality Risk Following a Household Suicide (2025) · cites this paper as [18]
The Introduction reports estimates of exposure to suicide, and the Discussion describes support needs among bereaved family members. Neither passage establishes that little is known about the number exposed and needing support in the broader household. The nonsuicide mortality clause carries other citations and is not attributed to this source. (LLM, conf=0.82)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredMost evidence comes from high-income countries, where more robust health systems may buffer harms.
“Most evidence comes from high-income countries,2,9,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22,23,24,26,27,28 where more robust health systems may buffer harms.”
From Mortality Risk Following a Household Suicide (2025) · cites this paper as [18]
The Abstract (Conclusions) identifies this as a study of suicide-bereaved family members in Ireland, so it provides an example of evidence from a high-income country. The paper does not establish that most evidence comes from high-income countries or compare health systems to assess whether they buffer harms. (LLM, conf=0.78)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredA number of smaller-scale qualitative studies have emphasised the importance of social and peer support in the aftermath of a suicide.
“As in the current study, a number of smaller-scale qualitative studies have emphasised the importance of social and peer support in the aftermath of a suicide [21], including Irish [36,37], North American [38,39], and Australian qualitative work [22].”
From Support Needs and Experiences of People Bereaved by Suicide: Qualitative Findings from a Cross-Sectional British Study of Bereaved Young Adults (2018) · cites this paper as [37]
Although the bereaved may express a notable desire to participate in suicide support groups, access to mental health services or specialized care for survivors remains scarce, especially in lower-resource contexts such as Brazil.
“Although the bereaved may express a notable desire to participate in suicide support groups,2,18 access to mental health services or specialized care for survivors remains scarce, especially in lower-resource contexts such as Brazil.41”
From Mortality Risk Following a Household Suicide (2025) · cites this paper as [18]
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- Authors
- Spillane, A., Matvienko-Sikar, K., Larkin, C., Corcoran, P., & Arensman, E.
- Affiliations
- University College Cork (IE)
- School of Public Health, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
- University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School (US)
- Corresponding author
- Spillane, Ailbhe
- Venue
- BMJ Open
- Publisher
- BMJ
- Published
- 2018-01
- Volume
- 8
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- e019472
- ISSN
- 2044-6055 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC5781012
- OpenAlex
- W4229728831
- Cited by
- 97
- References
- 50
- Citations by year
- 2026: 10 · 2025: 17 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 20 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 1
- FWCI
- 7.60
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- cc-by-nc
- Locations
- BMJ Open (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- Arrow@dit (Dublin Institute of Technology) (acceptedVersion)
- eScholarship@UMassChan (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- Cork Open Research Archive (University College Cork, Ireland) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- Lenus, The Irish Health Repository (Dr Steevens Hospital Library) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Funders
- Health Research Board
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Grief, Bereavement, and Mental Health
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Suicide and Self-Harm Studies
- Social Sciences › Anthropology › Death, Funerary Practices, and Mourning
- Keywords
- suicide bereavement, family members of suicide victims, grief, depression, anxiety, stress, psychosomatic symptoms, guilt and blame, informal support, next of kin
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