When the Cause of Death isn’t Specified

Obituaries are one of the cremation services offered in Boones Mill, VA. When older people die, it is natural to assume that even if the cause of death is not listed in their obituary that they simply died because of old age and from natural causes. 

However, when younger people die and no cause of death is specified in their obituary, people wonder what they died from, how they died, and why they died. In the natural order of things, it is always surprising, although not as unusual as we may believe, when someone who is not older dies. 

There are many reasons why family members may not include the cause of death in their younger loved one’s obituary. 

Sometimes the cause of death in younger people is left out of their obituaries because the family doesn’t think it’s important to include it. The cause of death could be natural, such as a stroke or a heart attack, or it could be the result of a terminal illness, such as cancer or organ failure. 

The family wouldn’t include that information in the obituary of an older loved one, so it doesn’t occur to them to include it in the obituary of the younger loved one. 

However, there are other times when a family will leave the cause of death out of a younger loved one’s obituary because of the cause itself. 

If a younger person died as a result of addiction or substance abuse, the family may choose to exclude that as the cause of death from the obituary. While some families are choosing to use their loved ones’ struggles with addiction and substance abuse to help other people, and they are including that as the cause of death in the obituaries, other families may be embarrassed or they may feel that the information is too private. 

Suicide is increasingly a common cause of death among younger people. The reasons for suicide are complex and may be the result of deep depression or mental illness. However, many families choose not to list suicide as the cause of death in their younger loved ones’ obituaries. 

Even though suicides are more common, the stigma that is associated suicides has not gone away. Families may feel shame about their loved one’s death or they may feel they will be judged harshly or negatively for not doing something to prevent the suicide (not that they necessarily could have, in the majority of cases). 

With violence and violent deaths on the increase, as well, in the United States, more and more younger people die as a result of violence. 

For example, more domestic assault and abuse cases are ending in either murder or murder suicide. Many routine arguments between friends or even family members, which once might simply been a little dust up that took some time to walk away from and recover from until it was resolved, are now ending in a violent death. 

Sometimes, violent deaths in younger people occur because there someplace they’re not supposed to be, or they’re involved in something they shouldn’t be involved in. Other times, violent deaths in younger people occur because they’re in the wrong place at the wrong time. 

If the family has not chosen to include the cause of death in a younger person’s obituary, do not put them on the spot by asking them how their loved one died. Not only is it disrespectful, but it also forces the grieving family into a situation that makes their loss even more intense. 

For additional information about cremation services in Boones Mill, VA, our caring and knowledgeable staff at Conner-Bowman Funeral Home & Crematory can assist you.