Category Archives: Guest Post

Like yesterday Pete (SiblingSurvivors Letters)

Hey Angel B,
My heart aches for a crazy phone call. Time heals nothing.Neither it should. I’m isolated in my own thoughts of what I should of done. So many what if’s. I’ve gone over your last words to me so many times Pete. I could of helped IF (always the if’s) I had just slowed down and really thought about what you were saying between the lines. Everything has changed Pete. Our family never recovered. I miss you my Angel B. The sun doesn’t shine as bright.

24 years later and I miss you more everyday.
Time brings us closer… that’s all time does.
Big brother of mine I miss you. I’m so sorry I wasn’t there for you. Forever so sorry. Xx

Two Months

It’s been just over two months since he decided it was time to leave us. There were no warning signs. If only he had hinted that he was feeling sad, in pain and totally hopeless. I would have helped him in a heartbeat. He was so kind, handsome, funny and absolutely the most genuine person I knew. It was an honour to be his brother for all those years, and I hope he is at total peace.

I am still numb, I haven’t even begun to think about what has happened. Sometimes I force myself to look at pictures at him, which ultimately ends up on me breaking down in tears. I am still so angry and annoyed that he didn’t come to me in his time of need. But more than that, I just miss him so much! I miss his witty jokes and his voice around the house. He was one of a kind.

Eight months

It’s been just over 8 months. I still feel just as stuck as the night you took your life. The first several weeks went by so fast. So many people in and out of the house. I just wanted them all gone so life could go back to “normal.” It never did and it never will.
No matter what I do, how late it is, how tired I am, my thoughts go to that awful night. Hearing your girlfriend call for help down the hall, saying that you had hung yourself. Seeing you there on our patio. Helping dad get you down. Trying to bring you back with the CPR I’ve practiced for years. I shake it off and turn the T.V. on.

You would have been such a great father and I wanted to be an aunt so much. I miss you all the time. Life is so hard now. I’m sorry you died in pain. I don’t believe in an afterlife and I know you didn’t either. So I hope you had a really nice dream before leaving forever. I read that might happen… I wish you could hear all the things I want to tell you all the time.
I love you Bubba.

To the best big brother a girl could ask for.

Dearest big brother:
I love you. More and more everyday. Losing you has made me see the true depth of love. I miss you. It has been a year and two months, and I find myself more lost than I could have ever fathomed.
My whole life purpose I thought was to protect you. I was going to go to law school, to know the mental health laws- so I could make sure you were safe. Now I am left to do it all in your honor, and I can’t help feeling like is there even a point anymore? Nothing is going to bring you back.
I have never felt more stuck. Stuck in grief, stuck in loss, stuck in the memories. We had so much more fun things to do together. We were going to take our kids to disney world, we were going to do life together. I truly lost a best friend, my big brother.
I hope you are in the happiest place playing the drums, and beating with love. And my wish is that you would have known how talented and amazing you were. I wish we all took the time to tell you. I wish I could have spent more time with you. I love you so much. And i don’t know how my heart will ever heal without you.

How to Cope

It’ll be 7 years in May since my older brother demons got the worst of him. And I miss him a great deal, but I know he’s in Heaven with others who recently lost their battle with this disease helping them adjust. And even though some religions feel its a sin when someone takes their own life. I don’t agree with that, God loves all his children especially the ones who suffer a great deal from this disease, and sends them back into his arms.

Sailor mike

I feel so weird writing on this website. This is something that is very unlike me-on the other hand doing something like committing suicide was very unlike you. I don’t know what happened, how we could have clearly missed all the signs. Now looking back it’s all so clear and that’s what I think upsets us the most. My brother Michael was 19 when he took his life on July 2, 2012. It was just shy of my 22nd birthday and I had just moved back home the month ago from graduating college. We were just starting to form our “adult” sibling relationship; less fighting, more joking around and now that’s all gone and I’m an only child after always having this little annoyance since I can remember. I know it’s almost been 5 years but missing you still comes in waves and I’ve noticed I have no desire to form a relationship with anyone. I don’t want a boyfriend, I don’t want a family, I just want to have my dog, my friends and parents to stay the way they are right now and I know that’s completely insane because I’m watching from the outside how all my friends are growing up, moving on with their lives and starting their own families and I feel like I’m still a 22 year old who just got sucker punched in the gut. I want to open my heart up and be happy on my own and not because of my medicine but I need you back and I know that’s not going to happen so I need you with me guiding me to a new breath of life. I love you Ze Mullet

Regret

I regret not being home for your last birthday. I went to a show that weekend. But it was the last time I could have seen you not in the hospital. I should have come home instead I will regret that for the rest of my life. The next week you went back into the hospital and I saw you there under supervision and we could only visit for an half hour it wasn’t long enough to tell you how much you meant to me and the week after that the day they let you out you killed yourself.

Does anyone understand?

My younger brother took his own life 5 months ago this week. He died 4 days after his 20th birthday. He had been suffering from depression, anxiety, OCD, ADHD, autism and borderline personality disorder. As well as abuse from our father and his girlfriend leaving him for someone else.
Now it’s time to go back to university and i’m struggling everyday without him. People don’t understand. It’s hard to function. I miss him everyday. People say time heals wounds but it feels like its getting deeper and harder to go through each day.
I like to talk about him but then people get awkward and make me feel uncomfortable about it. Or if they do talk about him they say things like “he made his choice, that’s where he wants to be.” but i don’t agree. i think he wanted help, he did not realise what he was doing.
I’m trying to be brave for my mum and for my family but nothing seems to help.
I’m finding it so hard to relate to people and to find people to talk to. It’s something only a sibling of someone who has taken their own life can understand.
Does anyone understand?

Little big bruv

I feel stupid putting this up here cuz we all have a very similar story, so thank you for allowing me this space! My little brother was only 17 he took his life 25th Jan this year! He had been struggling with mental health issues for about six month and was being a little s*** stealing off me, getting chucked out of college, loads of really out of character stuff. He even told me in August he had a voice in his head telling him to do things he didn’t agree with and we both spoke about it and thought it was just his ego, but he was clearly really ill. I just fought with him and sat in the room next to him every day for 6 month obsessing over my own problems when my baby brother’s losing it in the next room. I hate my self for not giving him more attention and asking him what he needed to feel ok! I know it’s not my fault but my brain just keeps going there.