Understand Suicide

This episode was created at the request of my listeners. Unfortunately, the topic of blame and self-blame are ubiquitous in suicide, and it is particularly directed at the immediate family and spouses. They are victims of this in many ways. Sometimes, it comes disguised in the tone of voice of family and friends when they say things like “but you didn’t see it coming?” or “I told you he/she needed to see a doctor.” Self-blame may or not be present, but it lingers when it is.

It took me a while to find the “perfect” guest to talk about blame, but I did and I am so fortunate that he said yes to the podcast. Dr. Jack Jordan is a Clinical Psychologist in Pawtucket/RI, USA; he has spent decades treating grieving families and has written extensively on the topic of suicide loss. He took a few hours off his well-deserved retirement to talk to us, so thank you again, Dr. Jordan.

His interview was deep and compassionate, one that I will always keep in my heart. I hope it brings comfort to those in need.

If you want to support my work, buy me a coffee. This will help me keep bringing hope to those touched by suicide:  https://bit.ly/3whorPH

Find Dr. Jack Jordan

https://www.johnjordanphd.com/

Buy his book "Devastating Losses: How Parents Cope With the Death of a Child to Suicide or Drugs:" 

https://amzn.to/35KSynU

Buy his book "Grief After Suicide: Understanding the Consequences and Caring for the Survivors:" 

https://amzn.to/3rzvPE4

Watch this interview on my YouTube channel:

https://bit.ly/3gvc7mm

Enroll in my course "How to help suicidal people." https://bit.ly/3klNZ7n

Visit my page www.understandsuicide.com   

Find my book "Understanding suicide: living with loss, paths to prevention:” https://amzn.to/2ANczuR

Read my blog on Psychology Today: https://bit.ly/2Y9WdID

Exchange experiences on my Facebook page: https://bit.ly/3h8sIet

If you need to talk, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on their website or phone: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org 

Phone: 800-273-8255

Despite the sharp rise of mental health issues and many other risk factors during the onset of COVID-19, the number of suicides in the United States decreased in 2020. Not only that but the most significant drop (14%) happened in April of 2020 when most of the country was in lockdown.

In an effort to understand this phenomenon, I invited two American leading suicide prevention experts: clinical psychologist John Sommers-Flanagan and the clinical social worker Stacey Freedenthal. Both of them are authors in the field of Suicidology and have been working with suicidal patients for decades. They are also professors: John teaches at the University of Montana and Stacey, at the University of Denver.

These and many other questions are discussed in this episode.

If you want to support my work, buy me a coffee. This will help me keep bringing hope to those touched by suicide:  https://bit.ly/3whorPH

Find John Flanagan:

https://johnsommersflanagan.com/

His “dancing" video:

https://bit.ly/3GL2USx

Find Stacey Freedenthal:

http://staceyfreedenthal.com/

Watch this discussion on my YouTube Channel "Understand Suicide:" 

https://youtu.be/fPrDdQg7G_E

Enroll in my course "How to help suicidal people." https://bit.ly/3klNZ7n 

Visit my page www.understandsuicide.com  

Find my book "Understanding suicide: living with loss, paths to prevention:”

https://amzn.to/2ANczuR  

Read my blog on Psychology Today:

https://bit.ly/2Y9WdID

Exchange experiences on my Facebook page: https://bit.ly/3h8sIet 

If you need to talk, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on their website or phone:

https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org

Phone: 800-273-8255

Georgena Eggleston lost her son and her brother to suicide. In this episode, she shares what has helped her cope with these unthinkable losses, and what she has learned over the years by being a grief therapist. Today, Georgena works with both suicide bereavement groups and individuals who are struggling to deal with this kind of loss. She is the author of the book “A new morning: discovering the gifts in grief,” in which she tells the story of her son’s life, her understanding of what happened, and her grief trajectory. 

If you want to support my work, buy me a coffee. This will help me keep bringing hope to those touched by suicide:  https://bit.ly/3whorPH

Find Georgena Eggleston: https://integratedwellbeinginstitute.com/ 

Buy her book: https://amzn.to/3IXObVM 

Watch this interview on my YouTube Channel: https://youtu.be/HmxpxKyfgjQ 

Enroll in my course "How to help suicidal people." https://bit.ly/3klNZ7n  

Visit my page www.understandsuicide.com   

Find my book "Understanding suicide: living with loss, paths to prevention:” https://amzn.to/2ANczuR   

Read my blog on Psychology Today: https://bit.ly/2Y9WdID 

Exchange experiences on my Facebook page: https://bit.ly/3h8sIet  

If you need to talk, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on their website or phone: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org Phone: 800-273-8255

I found JD Schramm by watching his TED talk. In that presentation, he came out, for the first time, about his suicide attempt. What he shared in this interview goes even deeper and covers different phases of his life, when other attempts had happened. The struggles he suffered involved drug abuse, dealing with his sexual identity, and a lot of negative self-image.

Today, he has turned his life around. He is married, engaged in mental health advocacy, has founded and led the Mastery in Communication Initiative at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, he is a published author, and was generous enough to share his story with us hoping that it will inspire others to make different and healthier choices in their lives.

If you want to support my work, buy me a coffee. This will help me keep bringing hope to those touched by suicide:  https://bit.ly/3whorPH

Watch his TED talk:

https://bit.ly/3GLLfd4

Find JC Schramm:

https://jdschramm.com/about/

Watch this interview on my YouTube Channel "Understand Suicide":

https://bit.ly/3yA0YJh

Are you looking for an online suicide loss support group? Join mine. See details here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://t.ly/qcCC9⁠⁠⁠⁠

Enroll in my course "How to help suicidal people." https://bit.ly/3klNZ7n 

Visit my page www.understandsuicide.com  

Find my book "Understanding suicide: living with loss, paths to prevention:”

https://amzn.to/2ANczuR  

Read my blog on Psychology Today:

https://bit.ly/2Y9WdID

Exchange experiences on my Facebook page: https://bit.ly/3h8sIet 

If you need to talk, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on their website or phone:

https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org

Phone: 800-273-8255

Despite his traumatic, abusive childhood, which left him with a constant sense of brokenness, Kellen Fluckiger worked hard to have ‘everything’ a person needs: a wife, kids, a successful career, and of course, a lot of money.

One day, at home, alone, after yet another failed relationship, he decided to watch TV, which was quite unusual for him. He realized that, although he had the most expensive TV one could buy, Kellan had no idea how to turn it on. After his daughter showed him how to do it, he came across a show called “Intervention.” The protagonist was a high-ranking executive with a cocaine problem. “That’s crap,” he thought, then turned it off.

A few hours later, he felt compelled to turn on the TV again, and there it was, the same show, the same executive, the same sad drama. This time, he sat down and watched it.

That was the first of a series of inexplicable events that sent Kellan into a personal crisis that made him re-evaluate his life. The high-ranking executive story had hit a cord. This is part of what you will hear in this interview. In a way, it sounds like what happens to many people out there who spend their lives fighting depression, trauma, and addiction. They build families, put on a mask of success, but live miserably inside with suicidal thoughts, always on the verge of a breakdown.

Today, Kellan tries to help others find purpose and meaning in life. He still has the big TV, still doesn’t watch it much, but the reason now is that he is out there bringing his message across to those who need to hear it.

If you want to support my work, buy me a coffee. This will help me keep bringing hope to those touched by suicide:  https://bit.ly/3whorPH

Find Kellan Fluckiger:

https://www.kellanfluckiger.com/

Enroll in my course (now with a special Holidays discount): "How to help suicidal people." https://bit.ly/3klNZ7n 

Visit my page www.understandsuicide.com  

Find my book "Understanding suicide: living with loss, paths to prevention:”

https://amzn.to/2ANczuR  

Read my blog on Psychology Today:

https://bit.ly/2Y9WdID

Exchange experiences on my Facebook page: https://bit.ly/3h8sIet 

If you need to talk, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on their website or phone:

https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org

Phone: 800-273-8255

This episode was created to answer the many questions I received from my listeners about the practice of mindfulness. I deeply believe in the power of being truly present as a way to achieve spiritual balance, internal peace, and as a valuable tool to improve relationships, so I decided to dedicate an episode to this topic.

In this episode, you will learn about the 9 pillars of mindfulness, what this practice can bring to your life, how it can transform the way you relate to self and others, and at the end, I will give you ten examples of mindfulness practices you can incorporate to your daily routine.

If you want to support my work, buy me a coffee. This will help me keep bringing hope to those touched by suicide:  https://bit.ly/3whorPH

Enroll in my course "How to help suicidal people." https://bit.ly/3klNZ7n 

Visit my page www.understandsuicide.com  

Find my book "Understanding suicide: living with loss, paths to prevention:”

https://amzn.to/2ANczuR  

Read my blog on Psychology Today:

https://bit.ly/2Y9WdID

Exchange experiences on my Facebook page: https://bit.ly/3h8sIet 

If you need to talk, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on their website or phone:

https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org

Phone: 800-273-8255

If you are interested in learning about trauma, watch my “Best books on trauma” review on YouTube. I focus on four great books, all of them written for the general public, so no jargon or complicated language.

I hope they help you understand the nature of trauma, how it affects the body, the way we perceive the world, and our relationships.

The books mentioned in the video are:

- What happened to you?: Conversations on trauma, resilience, and healing by Oprah Winfrey and Bruce D. Perry

- Trauma and recovery: the aftermath of violence - from domestic abuse to political terror by Judith Herman

- Thriving after trauma: stories of living and healing by Shari Botwin

- The body keeps the score: Brain, mind, and body in the healing of trauma by Bessel Van der Kolk

WATCH HERE: https://youtu.be/u0szpCmUpJI

Is self-harm a risk factor or even a suicide warning sign? Is it related to addiction? What’s the best way to help a person who self harms? These and other questions are answered in this interview by the clinical psychologist and published author Juliana Falcão, who specializes in treating self-harm, particularly teenagers.

Her insightful overview about this topic includes an evaluation of the impact of the Internet on this phenomenon, tips to parents on how to address the issue with their kids, and the different meanings that self-harm holds to those who resort to self-injurious behaviors.

For those who are interested in knowing more about self-harm, Juliana recommends these books:

If you want to support my work, buy me a coffee. This will help me keep bringing hope to those touched by suicide:  https://bit.ly/3whorPH

Watch this interview on my YouTube channel "Understand Suicide:”

https://bit.ly/3BDOsIB

Enroll in my course "How to help suicidal people." https://bit.ly/3klNZ7n 

Visit my page www.understandsuicide.com  

Find my book "Understanding suicide: living with loss, paths to prevention:”

https://amzn.to/2ANczuR  

Are you looking for an online suicide loss support group? Join mine. See details here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://t.ly/qcCC9⁠⁠⁠⁠

Exchange experiences on my Facebook page: https://bit.ly/3h8sIet 

If you need to talk, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on their website or phone:

https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org

Phone: 800-273-8255