A study highlights that grieving siblings are often neglected in discussions of bereavement, despite 5% to 8% of children losing siblings at a young age, which significantly impacts their mental health. Surviving siblings, particularly those who lose siblings to suicide, face increased risks of severe mood disorders and premature death, with some studies suggesting they die two and a half times faster than other children. The findings indicate a pressing need for more research to understand and support sibling survivors in coping with their loss.

1. Grieving Siblings are
Often Overlooked,
Study Suggests
Hospice of the Calumet Area

2. Losing a sibling to death at an early age is a tragedy that not everyone can contemplate.
This, however, is a common occurrence in the United States, as 5% to 8% of children
with siblings experience this loss.
When a person dies, those who mourn would often tell the bereaved siblings to watch
the parents for they are going through a difficult time, or that the surviving sibling needs
to be good to their parents so that they would not have that much of a hard time.
The death of a sibling changes the relationship between the parents and their living
children, especially when someone dies from suicide.
Sibling Grief: Often Overlooked, Misunderstood
An article on Shots, the NPR Science Desk’s online channel for health stories, revealed
that researcher typically overlook survivors in medical research. As a result, few people
are aware of their situation and had guidance on how to support them.

3. Some survivors who lose their siblings to suicide, especially those who are of the same
sex or nearly the same age, suffer from severe mood disorders and have more thoughts
about suicide compared to those who lose a sibling to other reasons.
An Increased Risk of Death
Grief is an immediate response to someone’s loss. Losing a sibling, however, is more
emotional and it can last for a long time—even decades. Recently, a study published in
JAMA Pediatrics revealed that children who experienced the loss of a sibling die two and
half times faster compared to other children.
Why are these kids more likely to die after their siblings? The research suggests that one
cause may be that it is genetic, as the study revealed that the siblings that die within
years of each other died of the same disease. Another reason could be the impact of the
loss to the surviving sibling’s mental health.

4. Sources:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23073753
http://www.hospicecalumet.org/
http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/article-abstract/2617991
http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/08/25/545554065/after-a-suicide-sibling-
survivors-are-often-overlooked
The recent studies give rise to a need for further research on sibling survivors. An
extensive research can provide sufficient information on how to help them cope with the
loss.