Surviving Suicide
Surviving Suicide: Stories of Help and Hope is a six-part documentary series exploring suicide through the deeply personal experiences of six individuals whose lives have been forever changed by it. Some survived their own attempts. Others lost someone they loved. Each story traces a different path through trauma, depression, grief, and recovery while focusing on what came next. From a 9/11 first responder confronting PTSD to a sister who transformed the loss of her brother into a national mental health organization, the series follows people who have turned some of the most difficult moments of their lives into a reason to help others. Alongside their stories, mental health professionals provide additional perspective and resources, creating a series centered not only on suicide, but on the conversations, understanding, recovery, and hope that can exist on the other side of it.
- 2021-2022
- 1 season
- The ABLE Channel
- Documentary
Surviving Suicide: Stories of Help and Hope is a six-part documentary series exploring suicide through the deeply personal experiences of six individuals whose lives have been forever changed by it. Some survived their own attempts. Others lost someone they loved. Each story traces a different path through trauma, depression, grief, and recovery while focusing on what came next. From a 9/11 first responder confronting PTSD to a sister who transformed the loss of her brother into a national mental health organization, the series follows people who have turned some of the most difficult moments of their lives into a reason to help others. Alongside their stories, mental health professionals provide additional perspective and resources, creating a series centered not only on suicide, but on the conversations, understanding, recovery, and hope that can exist on the other side of it.
Season 1 Episode Guide
6 Episodes 2021 - 2022
Episode 1
Cliff Bauman
Tue, Oct 13, 2026 29 mins
Cliff Bauman is a veteran who was stationed in Washington DC near the Pentagon on 9/11. He was involved in the rescue mission there, which led to an ongoing depression that culminated in a suicide attempt.
Episode 2
Amanda Southworth
Tue, Oct 13, 2026 28 mins
Amanda Southworth is many things: a teenager, an entrepreneur, and a suicide survivor. Her amazing story includes founding a company that uses tech-based solutions to help people of all ages with their mental health challenges.
Episode 3
Dese'Rae Stage
Tue, Oct 13, 2026 27 mins
Dese'Rae Stage is a photographer and suicide survivor. She travels the country interviewing and photographing fellow suicide survivors.
Episode 4
Sally Spencer-Thomas
Tue, Oct 13, 2026 28 mins
Sally Spencer-Thomas lost her brother Carson to suicide. As a licensed counselor, she holds her brother's memory close to her heart as she counsels men on the techniques of understanding their battles with depression.
Episode 5
Nancy Nettles
Tue, Oct 13, 2026 28 mins
Nancy Nettles lowest point came when she was a single mom living out of her car, and she sent the kids to their father's house so she could kill herself on her birthday. Miraculously, she survived.
Episode 6
Alison Malmon
Tue, Oct 13, 2026 28 mins
When she was in college, Alison Malmon's brother took his own life. From the depths of her grief she started Active Minds, now the leading mental health organization for college students in America.