mathdoll
Junior Member
The light is getting brighter........
Posts: 88 
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Post by mathdoll on Apr 24, 2016 2:18:03 GMT -5
I think any situation which causes emotional, physical or practical difficulties can contribute to someone killing themselves. It seems clear to me that if a person feels significant rejection and has exhausted their coping strategies then suicide may be an outcome. This is particularly the case with sexless relationships as people often also feel isolated. That's one reason this site is so important.
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Post by petrushka on Apr 24, 2016 4:22:58 GMT -5
I wonder if suicide is more common in places that stress individualism, pulling yourself up by your bootstraps, etc. (due to society frowning on people who admit they can't do everything by themselves, and who ask for help.) Not necessarily. Some highly directive, restrictive societies struggle with very high suicide numbers ... I still remember doing a bus tour through Singapore many years ago and I was agog at the fact that they didn't have the ground floor windows barred, they had the upper floor windows barred. Similarly Japan with it's very very restrictive and directive social norms and mores has a very high suicide rate. What I've seen documented, a lot due to fear of failing over-the-top expectations from parents, failure at work ... On the other hand you have Sweden which is the epitome of a laid back society, yet they, too, have very high suicide rates. NZ apparently has a shockingly high rate amongst kids and teens, mostly males. |
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Post by petrushka on Apr 24, 2016 4:26:46 GMT -5
I think any situation which causes emotional, physical or practical difficulties can contribute to someone killing themselves. It seems clear to me that if a person feels significant rejection and has exhausted their coping strategies then suicide may be an outcome. This is particularly the case with sexless relationships as people often also feel isolated. That's one reason this site is so important. I've had thoughts of suicide. It was always one of two things: a relationship turning to shit, stealing my will to live, stealing my hopes for a worth-while future, or the two times I had clinical depression back in the 80s. That was a symptom of the disease though, and I was perfectly aware of that and told myself not to listen, that it was not my 'own' thoughts, just a symptom. Worked for me. |
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Post by Rhapsodee on Apr 24, 2016 11:36:03 GMT -5
It's the feeling of being worthless that drives some people to suicide. They aren't in any real pain. They simply see no value in their existence. You can't know that. There a lot of reasons for suicide and one of those is overwhelming emotional pain. Yes sweetie, I do know that. I can tell you all about what it's like to feel worthless. My cousin committed suicide. He appeared to be a normal young man, active and social. No sign of depression. It wasn't until after he died that friends and family realized that even though he was with people, he was detached. His journal expressed his sense of worthlessness. |
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Jun 9, 2016 16:00:28 GMT -5
I wonder if suicide is more common in places that stress individualism, pulling yourself up by your bootstraps, etc. (due to society frowning on people who admit they can't do everything by themselves, and who ask for help.) Strangely, suicide is higher in socialist countries. |
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Post by obobfla on Jun 9, 2016 17:46:11 GMT -5
Having a family member who is mentally ill, I have spent plenty of time on mental health issues. I have had friends who have taken their own lives and others who lost family members. There have also been times I have been in so much emotional anguish that I have wondered whether it would be better to end it all. Fortunately, I never acted on those feelings.
Here is what I believe are the greatest factors in the increase in suicide, based on what I know:
- Lack of mental health facilities: Years ago, we threw the insane into jails. People said that was cruel, so we built mental hospitals. But then people said that mental hospitals were cruel, so we closed them down. So where do we send mentally ill people now? Jail. The three facilities with the most mentally ill patients are the Los Angeles County Jail, the Cook County Jail, and Riker's Island.
-Veterans: Many of them are coming home from combat ill-equipped to handle civilian life. An average of 22 veterans a day commit suicide.
-Lack of opportunity: People are not as upwardly mobile as they were in the past. They have less hope that life will get better.
Not only have I married someone mentally ill, I have gotten to know a lot of people who are seriously mentally ill yet manage to thrive. A schizophrenic I know is one of the best fathers I know. He has held together dealing with a stepson who has been violently mentally ill, being a rock for his family. Another man with schizo-affective disorder started a drop-in center for the homeless and the severely mentally ill.
In dealing with them, I have come to realize that we all have the same delusions and paranoia as they do. The difference between a healthy person and a mentally ill person is the healthy person can put the brakes on those thoughts and emotions. For some reason, a mentally ill person lacks those brakes. There are times I talk to my wife about my fears and horrible thoughts, and she understands. Yet I can overcome mine. She can't. I try to tell her how I overcome mine, but she just can't comprehend it.
A lot of us know how to swim. But there are those of us who experience a tsunami of fear and despair that they drown in it. That is suicide.
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Post by obobfla on Jun 9, 2016 17:50:50 GMT -5
Quick add to news coverage of suicides. I worked at a newspaper years ago. We would never report on a suicide unless the person committed it in public or was well-known. Coverage does cause others to contemplate suicide and adds to the family's grief. The news outlets I know do their best to report on suicide as responsibly as they can. It is a tough call for them.
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Post by obobfla on Jun 9, 2016 18:26:18 GMT -5
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Post by baza on Jun 17, 2016 2:20:57 GMT -5
Was just looking at some stats about this - concentrating on the English speaking part of the membership (US, UK, Canada, Australia, NZ)
Per 100,000 population, suicide rates
United Kingdom ----- 6.2 (ranking 105)
New Zealand----- 9.6 (ranking 72)
Canada------- 9.8 (ranking 70)
Australia-------- 10.6 (ranking 63)
United States------ 12.1 (ranking 50)
"Best" is Saudi Arabia at 0.4 (ranking 1)
"Worst" is Guyana 44.2 (ranking 170)
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