Loss of a Sibling

While known for child loss support, TCF has extensive resources and specific online groups for siblings grieving a brother or sister.

The Dougy Center

The National Grief Center for Children & Families , offers peer support groups specifically for children, teens, and young adults grieving the death of a sibling.

GriefShare

A nationwide network of grief support groups , many members are grieving siblings. Offers in-person and online groups with structured, compassionate curriculum.

Highmark Caring Place

A free nonprofit grief center for children, teens, and the adults who care for them, with peer support groups, family activities, and programs designed around a child's developmental age. Whole families, including surviving siblings, are welcomed.

Fernside (Hospice of Cincinnati)

One of the oldest children's grief programs in the country, offering family groups, camps, school support, and crisis outreach. Sibling grief is addressed openly in its family programming.

The Center for Grieving Children (Portland, Maine)

A peer-support grief center where children and teens find others their age after any death in the family. Services and resources are free, and families can also access its online resource library.

Mourning Hope

A grief center built for young people, with peer support groups, camps, and family programs. Designed to give grieving kids a place where they are not the odd one out.

My Grief Angels

A volunteer-run online grief community offering moderated support groups and a warm peer forum. No cost, no insurance, and open to anyone looking for other people who get it.

Books

Surviving the Death of a Sibling

T.J. Wray

A practical, compassionate guide for adults grieving a sibling , covering the unique dynamics of this loss, from guilt and regret to identity shifts.

The Empty Room: Understanding Sibling Loss

Elizabeth DeVita-Raeburn

A blend of memoir and research , the author lost her brother as a child and explores how sibling loss shapes the life of the one left behind.

Healing the Adult Sibling's Grieving Heart

Alan Wolfelt, PhD

100 practical ideas for navigating sibling grief, from one of the most respected voices in grief counseling. Gentle, actionable, and deeply understanding.

Sibling Grief

P. Gill White

A thorough exploration of the unique terrain of sibling grief , often overlooked, rarely understood, and profoundly life-changing.

The Wild Truth

Carine McCandless

A memoir from a surviving adult sibling's first-person perspective: Carine McCandless, sister of Chris McCandless of Into the Wild, tells the story of growing up with her brother, of losing him, and of the family secrets that shaped them. One of the few full memoirs written by an adult surviving sibling, and available as an audiobook. This is one family's personal story, not a general instructional sibling-grief guide.

The Goodbye Book

Todd Parr

Todd Parr's bright, simple picture book walks a young child through saying goodbye to someone they love. Gentle and reassuring, for young children, ages 3-7, with room for a child's own feelings.

Something Very Sad Happened

Bonnie Zucker

Written by a child psychologist, this picture book explains death in plain words a very young child can hold onto, for children about ages 2-6, and gives parents a script for the first conversations. Warm and developmentally honest, from the American Psychological Association's Magination Press.

When Dinosaurs Die: A Guide to Understanding Death

Laurie Krasny Brown and Marc Brown

A straightforward, child-friendly guide to what death means, what funerals are for, and how feelings work afterward. A staple for school-age children, ages 5-9, that families and schools keep coming back to.

Tear Soup

Pat Schwiebert and Chuck DeKlyen

A gentle storybook about Grandy, who makes a pot of tear soup after a great loss, showing that grief is slow, personal, and not something to rush. For school-age children, it includes a recipe-style grief guide for the adults reading with them. Published by Grief Watch, a longtime grief resource nonprofit.

Straight Talk about Death for Teenagers

Earl A. Grollman

A classic, direct book for teenagers about what mourning feels like, what helps, and how to talk to friends and family. Written without condescension by a longtime grief counselor.

Podcasts

Grief Out Loud

Produced by The Dougy Center, this podcast frequently features siblings grieving the loss of a brother or sister , giving voice to a grief that's often pushed aside.

What's Your Grief Podcast

Eleanor and Litsa cover sibling loss in several episodes with their signature blend of professional expertise and human warmth.

Terrible, Thanks for Asking

Many episodes feature people grieving siblings , honest, often unexpectedly funny conversations about carrying loss forward.

Griefcast

Comedian Cariad Lloyd talks with guests about the person they lost and how grief actually felt. Many episodes center on the death of a sibling, and the tone is honest, warm, and often funny.

Death, Sex & Money (WNYC)

Anna Sale interviews people about the big things we usually avoid talking about, including death and grief. The archive includes multiple episodes on losing a sibling and on how families grieve differently.

Videos & Talks

Grief Out Loud: Sibling Loss

Watch →

The Dougy Center's video series on sibling grief , young people and adults sharing what it's really like to lose a brother or sister.

Free Downloads

Workbooks, journal prompts, and guides , free to use, written with care, designed to meet you where you are.

Guide

Understanding Grief: A Gentle Guide

While a sibling-specific workbook is in the works, this guide helps you understand what you're experiencing , and validates that sibling grief is real, deep, and deserves its own space.

Download My Journal — Free PDF

Journal

My Journal

Ten simple pages for whatever you need to write down. No prompts. No rules. Just space.

Looking for Personal Support?

Find a Provider in Your Area

Choose your state and we'll keep this kind of loss in mind while showing you what's available near you, including national resources for Loss of a Sibling.

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For Family & Friends

If you're here because someone you love is navigating this loss , thank you. Showing up matters. Here's guidance specific to this kind of grief.

What to say

""I'm sorry for your loss , and I want you to know I see yours too." Sibling grief is often overshadowed by a parent's grief or a spouse's grief. Acknowledging that their loss deserves its own space matters.
""What was your relationship like?" Sibling relationships are complex , close, strained, competitive, tender. Let them talk about the real relationship, not a sanitized version.
""I'm checking in on you , not anyone else in your family, just you." So many check-ins go through the parent or spouse. Direct care for the sibling is rare and meaningful.

What not to say

“"How is your mom/dad doing?"”
People instinctively ask about the parents , and forget the sibling is grieving too. This communicates that their grief is secondary, which can deepen the isolation.
“"You need to be strong for your parents."”
A sibling shouldn't have to set aside their own grief to support others. This pressures them to suppress their own pain and can build long-term resentment and unprocessed grief.
“"Were you close?"”
The depth of grief isn't determined by the closeness of the relationship on paper. A complicated or distant sibling relationship carries its own grief , for what was, what wasn't, and what will never be.

How to show up

Acknowledge the unique loss. A sibling is a keeper of shared history , the only other person who knew that particular childhood, those family dynamics. Validate that losing them means losing a part of their own story.
Include them in remembrance. On anniversaries and holidays, reach out directly to the sibling , not through their parents. A text that says 'Thinking of you and your brother today' is small but profound.
Let the relationship be complicated. Not all siblings were close. Some had conflict. Let them grieve the complexity , the loss of the chance to work things out, the anger mixed with sadness. Don't sanitize it.

The full guide for supporters

Nearby paths

Grief rarely fits into one box. These paths may also speak to what you're carrying.

Loss of a Parent

If you lost your sibling as a child or young adult, you may also be navigating your parents' grief , or the complex dynamics of becoming an 'only child.'

Loss of a Child

If you're a parent who lost a child and are now watching your other children grieve their sibling, this space can help you understand their experience.

Traumatic / Violent Loss

If your sibling's death was sudden, violent, or by suicide, the grief carries extra weight , unanswered questions, trauma, and a particular kind of isolation.