Personal and professional experiences of suicide

This thesis explores the experiences of suicide from three distinct perspectives; Mental Health Professionals, young men who have attempted suicide and a researcher in the field. Chapter one is a systematic review of the psychological impact of client suicide on Mental Health Professionals. A meta-ethnographic synthesis of 17 studies identified three key themes; 1) distress, 2) blame and 3) taking control. The findings are discussed in relation to previous reviews. Overarching issues relate to the damaging and lost-lasting psychological impact of client suicide. This review has implications for the development of postvention guidelines to support Mental Health Professionals following a client suicide. Chapter two is a qualitative research study of young men’s interpersonal experiences following a suicide attempt. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with four males, aged 27 to 34 years, recruited from Community Mental Health Teams. Using a method of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, three key themes emerged from the data; 1) sense of self, 2) fear of self and 3) reconnecting with oneself. The findings are discussed in relation to the current literature and the Interpersonal Psychological Theory of Suicide. Clinical implications and directions for future research are also discussed. Chapter three is a reflective paper on the challenges of conducting qualitative research on suicide from the perspective of a Trainee Clinical Psychologist. Gibbs’ (1988) six stage model of reflection is used to structure the author’s reflections on three key challenges; 1) responsibility; 2) emotional labour; and 3) fear of suicide. These challenges are discussed in the context of the current literature