Episode 56
Heather Sutherland - Suicide loss as the wallpaper to your life
"I never got to say goodbye, and he never said it to me, so our relationship, albeit in different forms, goes on"
Key takeaways from this podcast
- Reframing our language to acknowledge that grief is a 'living' experience rather than a past-tense 'lived one' can be really helpful
- Relationships don't necessarily end with death
- framing helpful and courageous questions which can be answered, rather than one's without an answer, can help us to move forward
Heather lost her brother Martin to suicide in 2011, a bereavement which has had a profound impact on the course and focus of her life and career in the years since. She talks about how her grief and loss of her brother isn’t a ‘lived’ experience but a ‘living’ one.
Now a lecturer in the ‘school of education, language and psychology’ at St John’s University in York, Heather’s research and work focusses on better understanding the issues around student mental health and mental health more widely across academic institutions.
A rich, honest and thought-provoking conversation about Heather’s experiences and research which will linger long in your memory.
Student Minds: https://www.studentminds.org.uk/
Advance HE - Education for Mental Health Toolkit - Staff Wellbeing: https://www.advance-he.ac.uk/teaching-and-learning/curricula-development/education-mental-health-toolkit/underpinning-infrastructure/staff-wellbeing
An article Heather wrote for BACP University and College Counselling journal: https://www.bacp.co.uk/bacp-journals/university-and-college-counselling/2024/articles-may/distinctions-and-visibilities/
SRHE post on academic mental health: https://srheblog.com/2024/04/10/the-importance-of-academic-mental-health/
Heather's Blog: https://sibsas.blogspot.com/?m=1
Martin's Music Site: https://www.martinsutherlandmusic.co.uk/
Heather's PhD research: https://researchportal.northumbria.ac.uk/en/studentTheses/thinking-differently-about-student-mental-health-and-wellbeing-le-3
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Speaking of Suicide is produced and presented by Adventurous Audio
