107 106 Chapter Five: Supporting Students with Mental Health Difficulties Chapter Five: Supporting Students with Mental Health Difficulties “Friends and family of the deceased will experience the most acute loss and will require ongoing support.” Apart from those who have connections to the deceased student, it is important to remember that those with psychiatric illnesses such as depression, severe substance abuse, severe personality disorders and psychosis, or those who have previously lost someone to suicide or experienced/ are experiencing suicidal thoughts themselves, even if not connected to the deceased, may also have a difficult time managing grief and emotions. Efforts should also be made to connect with these students, whenever possible. Small group discussions and support sessions, with the help of Student Counselors and other competent staff from School/Department, can be arranged to facilitate the grieving process and mutual support, to check how the survivors are managing, and to create a comfortable means for clinical services as needed. Supporting Those Impacted by the Student Death Friends and family of the deceased will experience the most acute loss and will require ongoing support. The emphasis should be on mourning the loss, and should extend beyond support provided immediately following the death, for example at sensitive milestones such as birthdays or anniversaries. In the case of a suicide, it is a natural impulse for the surviving friends and family to ask for a simple reason as to why a suicide happened and this might involve blaming someone close to the deceased. This is important to remind people that suicide is never the result of a single factor, but rather is a complicated convergence of many factors. The following groups of people are considered higher risk groups and warrant special attention and care. • Siblings and friends • Accidental and/or intentional first responders or person(s) who discovered body • Resident life staff who knew the deceased student or have dealt with other campus tragedies • Faculty and staff who knew the deceased student • Students in the same dorm or residential hall • Students in the same academic department • Students in the same society/club/student activity • Students who went to the same secondary school or are from the same hometown as the deceased • Students who may identify in other ways with the deceased, e.g., similar experience, similar background
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