The Leftover Pieces: Suicide Loss Conversations

Suicide loss changes everything. The Leftover Pieces® Podcast explores life after suicide through honest conversations with survivors, experts, and grieving parents learning to live forward after unimaginable loss. Parents, partners, siblings, and friends share what it means to keep living when the world has been forever changed.

Hosted by Melissa Bottorff-Arey, whose 21-year-old son Alex died by suicide in 2016, the show blends intimate conversations with survivors, healers, and mental health professionals with short solo reflections you can actually use. Together we explore child loss, trauma and nervous-system care, anniversaries and seasons, stigma, faith and meaning, legacy, and the everyday practices that help make life livable again.

At its heart, this podcast is about learning to live forward after loss. We never move on from the people we love, but we can learn to carry the grief differently. This road can feel incredibly lonely—but you are not alone here.

For supporters, educators, and professionals, these conversations also offer insight into the realities of suicide grief and what genuine, non-fixing support can look like.

If you’d like to share your story or expertise, you can request to be a guest through Melissa’s website.

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Content Note
This podcast speaks candidly about grief and suicide loss and may feel activating for some listeners. We avoid graphic descriptions and discussion of suicide methods. Please care for yourself as needed. Melissa is not a doctor or licensed therapist, and nothing shared here should be considered medical or mental-health advice.

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Episoder(330)

Survival, Hope, Healing… Then What?: Why Grief Changes Years After Child Loss by Suicide

What (actually) happens after survival? In this episode of Down the Rabbit Hole, Melissa speaks honestly about the part of grief few people prepare grieving mothers for — the “now what?” space that of...

18 Mai 16min

Mother’s Day After Child Loss: If I’m Telling the Truth

Mother’s Day after child loss can feel impossibly complicated. In this episode of Down the Rabbit Hole, Melissa speaks honestly about the layered reality of motherhood after suicide loss—the grief, th...

10 Mai 14min

Do We Ever Stop Grieving?: Life After Suicide Loss and the Truth No One Tells You

Do we ever stop grieving after losing a child to suicide? In this episode, we go 'down the rabbit hole' to explore the reality of long-term grief after suicide loss and what happens after the initial...

2 Apr 25min

When the Mind Breaks: A Mother, A Doctor, and the Reality of Psychosis

In this episode, I’m joined by Colleen Kraft—a pediatrician of 36 years and a mother of three—who shares the story of her son Tim, who died by suicide in February of 2022 at the age of 31. Tim’s journ...

25 Mar 48min

Year Ten of Grief: A Quiet Return and the Bridges We Build

A Quiet Return: Ten Years of Grief and the Bridges We Build After an unexpected, unplanned two-month pause, Melissa returns to The Leftover Pieces Podcast with a quiet and honest reflection on what it...

15 Mar 19min

Still Here: A New Year’s Eve Reflection

A daily December series offering tender, truthful support for surviving the holidays after suicide loss — with grief, grace, & gentle company. Get THE Leftover Pieces APP & don't miss anything! 👉 The...

31 Des 20257min

Journaling as a Lifeline After Suicide Loss: Reflection, Healing, and Support

In this episode of The Leftover Pieces; Suicide Loss Conversations, I’m joined by Sean Dadashi to explore how journaling can support healing after suicide loss. We talk about why journaling often beco...

30 Des 202552min

Looking Back Without Judgment: Allowing Space and Grace

A daily December series offering tender, truthful support for surviving the holidays after suicide loss — with grief, grace, and gentle company. Get THE Leftover Pieces APP & don't miss anything! 👉 T...

29 Des 20253min