Why Did Daddy End His Life? Why Did He Have To Die?
A Suicide Bereavement Book For Children and Parents
by
Book Details
About the Book
This book, which is written for children between the ages of five and twelve years, provides a resource that parents and caregivers can use to support and guide their children through the difficult process of suicide bereavement. Explaining suicide is not a task that parents are usually prepared for. Parents and caregivers often feel lost and overwhelmed at the prospect of having to discuss suicide with their children. Written from the perspective of a child, this illustrated story provides a fictional character for children to relate to. The story guides children through the difficult emotions they may feel, but often find difficult to express. It ends by reassuring children that they can survive the pain of their loss, even though it currently feels unbearable. Parents and caregivers should read this book with their children. This book provides a means to explain suicide and suicide bereavement in a way that children can understand, while also giving children permission to talk openly about their loss. The goal is to increase the sense of connection between parents and caregivers and their children and to help children feel understood and supported. In the supplementary parent’s guide, the author answers some of the common questions that arise for parents and caregivers, and covers specific examples of how they can respond to their children when discussing the suicide.
About the Author
Samantha Pekh, M.A., is a Registered Psychologist, a Certified Traumatologist, and an Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) practitioner. Through her private practice, PsychSolutions, Inc, Samantha supports children, adults, and families through their losses and painful experiences. After a loss to suicide, she has found that many families struggle in finding the right words to explain suicide and in knowing how to support their children in age-appropriate ways. This children’s book was written to meet the needs families and children who have lost a loved one to suicide. For more information, view Samantha’s educational videos and articles by visiting samanthapekh.com or psychsolutions.ca.