LOSS - Loved Ones Suicide Survivors Support Group

02/14/2026

02/13/2026

To the person who was just introduced to grief…

First..I’m sending you so many hugs..

Second..Take a deep breath.

I don’t have to tell you that this chapter of your life will come with the hardest most devastating pages you will have to write in your story.

That being said..
The trials of grief can’t be skipped over to find happier parts of the book.
So let’s bookmark for a bit.

This is not what you want to hear..
I know. I have been there. But stay with me.

Try opening your door and invite Grief in.

It has much to teach us…

Like the feeling of everyone just going on with their lives…and you just want to scream for them to stop because how can the world go on??

Actually if the world stopped for your person..that would mean they were special to everyone. And that takes away the special doesn’t it? This grief is yours. As unique as your relationship was. Embrace it.

The brain fog you feel is because grief may need your attention. Your loss should be in the forefront of your mind right now. How couldn’t it be?? And never feel guilty for it. Those feelings are asking for attention. Honor them.

Grief needs time and patience in a world that just wants to rush everything. People who have the privilege of not understanding how this feels shouldn’t be giving you expectations. This part of the loss needs to be felt and expressed..so other things will need to wait. Someday they will get it.

Grief is the only connection we still have with them. We are feeling all these feelings because of our love. It feels heavy because we miss them…but it also creates a heavenly bond. When you think of it this way..it can never be frightening.

So invite grief in.
It will be your constant companion for a while in this chapter. And will continue to show up in pages until your story is over.

But if that keeps me connected..
Let me continue to weave it into my life.
I wouldn’t have it any other way.

02/13/2026

Imagine a person who loved you…
Instantly subtracted from your life.

The time it took to build that type of relationship…
All the love you try to send returns in silence..
The love you are trying to receive feels lost in a place you can’t get to…
The frightening realization of the finality of their absence.

The void left behind..

Is called grief.

02/13/2026

Maybe when someone we love
leaves this world,
we end up wondering
if they really knew
Just how loved they were.
We are left with unsaid words
and hearts heavy with
unexpressed emotions.

We long for one last chance
to hold them and comfort them,
allowing our hearts to spill over
with all the love which is now left
with nowhere to go.
We speak the words out loud
hoping they will hear us.

Maybe our hearts were so
full of love for this person
we had to keep some back
for fear of them drowning in it.
We assumed they would always
be there to receive each hug,
each cuddle, each touch.
But they left before we could
give them all the love they
could have received over a lifetime.

So we are left hoping that they
can still feel us and everything
that we want to continue giving them.
They still occupy our hearts
and live in our thoughts and memories.
And we look for signs that they
understand and reciprocate all
that we have left to offer.
And maybe they never really left
they just continue to exist in our love ..
🖋️ C.E. Coombes
🎨 Deborah Maguire

www.stephysplace.org

02/07/2026

02/07/2026

There was a day—I don't even remember how long after—when the wave hit.

I was doing something completely ordinary. Something mundane.

And the wave came crashing down.
Not gently.
Not gradually.
Like a tsunami that came out of nowhere and knocked me off my feet.

I couldn't breathe.
I couldn't stand.
I couldn't do anything but let it pull me under.

They're gone.
Actually gone.
Not coming back. Ever.

I'd been living with that truth.
But on this day, the wave just came. And it destroyed me.

I couldn't fight it.
I couldn't push through it.
All I could do was let it take me.

People talk about grief coming in waves.
And it does.
But nobody tells you about the waves that come out of nowhere weeks, months or years later.
The ones that hit when you think you're starting to find your footing again.

This wave showed me I'd never really had my footing at all.
I was just standing in shallow water, and this pulled me straight into the deep end.
I don't know what triggered it.

Maybe nothing.
Maybe the wave was always coming and I just didn't see it.
Maybe something small reminded me. Maybe my brain finally let itself feel what had been building.

All I know is the wave hit.
And I went under.
And for a while, I didn't know if I'd come back up.

Eventually, I did.

The wave passed.
I caught my breath.
I stood back up.

But I know now: the waves don't stop.
They just keep coming.

Some days they're small.
Manageable.
I can see them coming and brace myself.

Other days they're like that day.
Out of nowhere.
Massive.
Unstoppable.

And all I can do is let them hit.
Let them pull me under.
And hope I surface on the other side.

That's what I learned the day the wave hit.
Grief isn't just one moment.
It's wave after wave.
Some you see coming.
Some you don't.
All of them relentless.

Written by: Aimee Suyko - In Their Footsteps

02/07/2026

There’s no shortage of books on grief, but not all grief books are created equal. Whether you’re looking for expert-led advice or comfort from someone with a similar experience, here are our team’s top picks.