Suicide: the pain of bereaved survivors

Abstract

Suicide, an act of self-inflicted violence consciously desired and carried out by the subject with the intention of death, wich generates important repercussions in the family and social context. The present study aims to understand these reverberations in the bereaved survivors. Using a qualitative methodology, through semi-structured interviews, were sought to give voice to eleven people impacted by a suicide. All ethical precepts were upheld. The content analysis method proposed by Bardin (1977) structured the organization in two categories: “The Unnameable” and “The Guilt”. Analyzed based on studies about the understanding of mourning processes for those who are kept, supported by different theoretical approaches, with emphasis on the psychoanalytic orientations. As main results, stands out that among the result of the trauma of this loss, there is an absence of words, capable of naming the force of the unrepresentable operating in the psychic apparatus. Thus, as overwhelming feelings of guilt that imprison the bereaved in search of answers to possible motivations and their responsibility for the suicidal act. Therefore, stands out the importance of new studies, to support specialized care for bereaved survivors, as well as postvention strategies helping them to face the devastating pain of suicide and its repercussions.