Suicide (cont.)
Where can people get help?
American Association of Suicidology
http://www.suicidology.org
1-202-237-2280
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
http://www.afsp.org
Jason Foundation
http://www.jasonfoundation.com/home.html
National Suicide Prevention Hotline
1-800-SUICIDE (784-2433)
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
1-800-273-TALK (8255)
National Suicide Prevention Strategy
http://www.sg.gov/library/calltoaction/
National Youth Violence Prevention Resource Center
1-866-SAFEYOUTH (1-866-723-3968)
http://www.safeyouth.org
Hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Eastern time
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
http://www.samhsa.gov
Suicide Prevention Advocacy Network (Span)
http://www.spanusa.org
Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention Program
http://www.yellowribbon.org/
National Strategy for Suicide Prevention
http://www.mentalhealth.org/suicideprevention/
The future
How to best assess the risk of someone committing suicide continues to be an
elusive challenge for health professionals, so it's an appropriate goal for future
research. The best way to achieve the balance between using psychiatric
medication to treat any underlying conditions that may result in suicidal
thoughts and the potential side effects of those medications is an ongoing issue
in suicide prevention.
- Suicide is the process of purposely ending one's own life. How societies
view suicide varies by culture, religion, ethnic norms, and the circumstances
under which it occurs.
- Nearly a million people worldwide commit suicide each
year—about 30,000 each year in the United States.
- Self-mutilation is the act
of deliberately hurting oneself without meaning to cause one's own death.
- Physician-assisted suicide is defined as a doctor ending the life of a person
who is incurably ill in a way that is either painless or minimally painful for
the purpose of ending suffering of the individual.
- The effects of suicide on
the loved ones of the deceased can be devastating, resulting in suicide
survivors enduring a variety of conflicting, painful emotions.
- Life
circumstances that may immediately precede a suicide include the time period of
at least a week after discharge from a psychiatric hospital, a sudden change in
how the person appears to feel, or a real or imagined loss.
- Firearms are the
most common means by which people take their life. Other common methods include
overdose of medication, asphyxiation, and hanging.
- There are gender, age,
ethnic and geographical risk factors for suicide, as well as those based on
family history, life stresses, and medical and mental-health status.
- Warning
signs that an individual is imminently planning to kill him- or herself may include
the making of a will, getting his/her affairs in order, suddenly visiting loved ones,
buying instruments of suicide, experiencing a sudden change in mood, or writing
a suicide note.
- Many people who complete suicide do not tell any health
professional of their intent in the months before they do so. If they communicate a
plan to anyone, it is more likely to be a friend or family member.
- The assessment of suicide risk often involves an evaluation of the presence,
severity, and duration of suicidal thoughts as part of a mental-health
evaluation.
- Treatment of suicidal thinking or attempt involves adapting
immediate treatment to the sufferer's individual needs. Those with a strong
social support system, who are hopeful and have a desire to resolve conflicts
may need only a brief crisis-oriented intervention. Those with more severe
symptoms or less social support may need hospitalization and long-term mental-health services.
- Treatment of any underlying emotional problem using a
combination of psychotherapy, safety planning, and medication remains the
mainstay of suicide prevention.
- People with suicidal thinking are encouraged
to talk to a doctor or other health professional, spiritual advisor, or
immediately go to the closest emergency room or mental-health crisis center
for help. Those who have experienced suicidal thinking are commonly directed to
keep a list of people to call in the event that those thoughts return. Other
strategies include having someone hold all medications to prevent overdose,
removing any weapons from the home, scheduling frequent stress-relieving
activities, getting together with others, writing down feelings, and avoiding
the use of alcohol or other drugs.
- Techniques for coping with the suicide of a
loved one include nutritious eating, getting extra rest, talking to others about
the experience, thinking of ways to handle painful memories, understanding their
state of mind will vary, resisting pressure to grieve by any one else's time
table, and survivors doing what is right for them.
- To help children and
adolescents cope with the suicide of a loved one it is important to ensure they
receive consistent caretaking, frequent interaction with supportive adults, and
understanding of their feelings as they relate to their age.
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Last Editorial Review: 10/24/2007
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