Dealing with an Unexpected Death

Handling an unexpected death will involve Surprise, AZ funeral homes, but there is a lot more that takes place before and after the funeral of someone who dies suddenly. An unexpected death brings with it more than grief. Numbness, panic, and temporary paralysis can occur. It’s important to have friends and family around to help, support, and ease the process for the person or people who’ve experienced the unexpected loss of a loved one. 

If an unexpected death occurs at home, the first thing you should do is call 911. Once you’ve called them, then family, close friends, and, if the person is working, the Human Resources department at their place of employment should be notified. Get someone to help you make these notifications, because everyone will ask questions and want to know the details and this can be overwhelming in the immediate time after an unexpected death. 

If your loved one died somewhere other than home, they will be transported by medical emergency services to a hospital. You or someone who knew the person will be asked to identify them at the hospital. 

The next step in dealing with an unexpected is to arrange for a cremation – with or without a funeral service – or for underground burial. If you know the wishes of the deceased, then go with those. If not, the funeral home director will guide you through the options, processes, and will offer invaluable support and advice at a time when you need it most. 

Funeral services for someone who died unexpectedly are often difficult to plan and execute, in part because the grief has set in with everybody participating and attending. However, you should select a trusted friend or allow the funeral director to oversee the service to ensure things go as you planned. 

Most funeral services have readings (scriptures, poems, passages from books, etc.), a eulogy, and music. You are not limited to this format, and the funeral home director can guide you in customizing the service to your needs. 

You will need to choose people to do the readings and the eulogy. For the eulogy, choose someone who really knew and loved the person who died unexpectedly. You may need to help that person write the eulogy, so be prepared for a lot of emotions – happy and sad – as you remember the loved one you’ve lost unexpectedly. 

For the music part of the funeral service, you can choose either recorded or live music. The funeral home director will help coordinate this. 

You will also need, if you’re doing an underground burial, to choose a cemetery and a casket. The funeral home director can help you with this and will make all the arrangements for the burial. 

After the burial, there still may be more to be done. If the deceased had small children, they’ll need care. If the deceased had pets, they’ll need care. Once you get the death certificates, then you’ll need to wrap up the deceased’s affairs. This will include legal and financial matters and may include contacting government agencies like Social Security and Medicare to notify them of the death. 

It’s important that family and friends pitch in with all of this after an unexpected death. A sole grieving person will have great difficulty handling all of this by themselves. 

If you need support for an unexpected death at Surprise, AZ funeral homes, you can talk with our empathetic and knowledgeable staff at Simply Cremation & Funeral Arrangements. You can come to our funeral home at 16952 W. Bell Rd., #303, Surprise, AZ, 85374, or you can call us today at (623) 975-9393.