Suicide and Its Prevention - Research Paper Example

? Suicide and Suicide Prevention Suicide and Suicide Prevention Introduction Suicide is actually a process in which a person purposely ends one owns life and it is a major challenge across the globe. The World Health Organization (WHO) cites suicide as one of the major public health burdens that faces developed countries and an upcoming problem in middle and developing societies. Many young people fall prey of suicide with an estimate of almost one million people dying each year from this epidemic. Further, WHO argues that the numbers of people that lose their lives through suicide are more than those that occur from homicides and war collectively. This statistics does not include the nonlethal suicide attempts, which are more common than the actual deaths from suicide (Reeves, 2010). Research by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that suicide is the 11th cause of death especially among people above the age of ten. They estimate that 33, 289 people committed suicide in the United States in the year 2009 and this rate has been constant over the years. It is also clear that suicide is constantly 3 to 7 times greater in older men above 65 years. However, lately it is evident that rates of suicide among the young people are common in most countries. The Native Americans and aboriginal have higher risk of suicide followed by the white people, and then African Americans as well as Latinos come closely behind (Sundararaman, 2011). Causes of Suicide It is approximated that 90% of individuals who attempt or die because of suicide have possibly one or more mental health disorders. In this respect, depression as a mental condition is number one cause of suicide in many people. This is because depression generated feelings of low mood, anxiety, tiredness, lack of interest in life, despair, and most of all hopelessness. Severe depression therefore, enhances chances of committing suicide and completing the act. This is often because the state of depression consumes a person’s mind creating ideas of ending the suffering one is going through (Yatham & Maj, 2011). Bipolar disorder is another major cause of suicide because it triggers a person to have mood swings. A person is encompassed by feelings of great happiness to suddenly feeling so down and depressed. This constant change in moods generates deep seeded feelings of unworthiness and unhappiness. In this way, it is estimated individuals with bipolar condition will most likely attempt suicide a minimum of once in their life. They have a 20 times more chance of attempting suicide that other people in the general society. The other is schizophrenia, which is a prolonged mental problem that often results in hallucinations (a situation where a person hears or visualizes things that are not even real), delusions (misconceptions about issues), and drastic behavior changes. It is evident that 1 in 20 persons suffering schizophrenia will commit suicide and this is mostly common as symptoms of this condition begin to emerge. This is mainly because they face losses may be in employment, family, relationships, or business realm causing sadness (Acton, 2013, p. 14). Another common cause of suicide is borderline personality disorder, which is mainly noticeable in people with unbalanced emotions, disturbed thoughts, rushed actions, and intense but insecure relationships with other individuals. These impulsive behaviors are common with people involved in drugs and even alcohol. Misusing drugs and alcohol often results in people acting out and making rushed decisions that are not well thought. Borderline personality therefore, results in self-harm and many of these people end up making at least an attempt of suicide once in life. It is also evident that people with this condition come from a background smeared with childhood abuse and sexual violation and they possess higher risk of engaging in suicidal behaviors (Yatham & Maj, 2011). Anorexia nervosa is another related mental disorder that is identified through eating problems and possibilities of suicide. In this way, the eating disorder pushes such individuals to feel fat and unattractive therefore, they constantly look for ways to reduce their weight. They have a habit of limiting the food they eat and other drastic actions like inducing themselves to vomit after taking something. Research shows that about five individuals with anorexia nervosa are most likely to attempt suicide once in their lifetime. Most mental health conditions are marred with stigma and this makes it easy for people to feel rejected and unworthy. This stigma is deep rooted in most societies and therefore, it enhances the feelings of hopelessness. Lack of knowledge and ignorance is the main cause of this stigma and additionally, results in making judgments that harm vulnerable individuals (Yatham & Maj, 2011). Other Risk Factors that Trigger Suicide There are many other things that make people vulnerable resulting to constant thoughts of suicide. One common is sexual orientation of an individual for instance; gay, lesbian or transgender may make a person to feel unworthy because of the prejudice that is associated with such sexual preferences. Others include huge debts, homelessness, poverty, war veterans, and being imprisoned or people recently released from jail. It is often that people feel depressed when a loved one dies causing feelings of suicide. Other cases include divorce, separation, or ending of a relationship that meant a lot to an individual. Terminal illness and being a victim of a traumatic event like rape or assault easily increases feelings of depression. This also generated feelings of low self-esteem, which is also a stimulator for suicidal thoughts and hopelessness (Acton, 2013). Preventing Suicide Suicide prevention requires immediate intervention when one realizes that a person has suicidal thoughts. Many people are revived to talk about their pain and depressing situation to someone who is ready to listen and offer support. The first step is to recognize signs of suicide in an individual, and then talking calmly to the person to ease the pain. It is important for the intervener to listen calmly and offer support without passing judgment. This is because passing judgment would make the suicidal person to feel much worse and isolate therefore, enhancing the desire to continue with the act. Showing compassion and concern to a depressed person is a major way of dealing with suicide. In this respect, it is necessary to tackle the problems that bring the feelings of depression and hopelessness. For instance, if the person has suffered a broken relationship, it is important to address the issue with encouragement that indicates that the pain would pass with time. People who are lonely and isolated need to be given comfort and another way to become active in the society to create new friends and relationships (Bertini, 2009). Address the person through direct questions without avoiding the topic to ensure that the individual realizes that someone else understands the pain. Direct questions would also enable the person to know how organized and prepared the victim has managed to get involved with the plans. In this way, the greater the detail a person has calculated, the more likely the person is likely to commit suicide. This means that drastic steps must be taken to prevent the person from falling it this trap. This could involve immediate therapy and counseling through a professional to address the problem. Counseling, medical and even psychological support ensures that the individual deals face to face with the problems causing depression to alleviate the pain (Nelson, 2009). The other important step is remove access to any objects or items that provide a means to commit suicide. This means that the intervener must look for things like guns, pesticides, medications, and ropes among others to ensure that the victim does not access them. People who have previously tried suicide before are more likely to try it again and therefore they need keen assistance. It is paramount to enroll such individuals to counseling on urgent basis so that they get the help that they urgently need. When a person is in distress and serious pain, it makes sense to see a counselor for guidance on how to deal with such intense emotions (Nelson, 2009). The other most important thing to prevent suicide is to have close support from loved ones. A person with suicidal thoughts needs a lot of love, family support, and unity including good communication channels at all times. This ensures that the victim builds confidence and self-esteem, which is crucial in eliminating suicidal thoughts. The person should also have close social support through friends in order to ensure that loneliness and isolation is minimized. If the person is a student, school and community support is a way to encourage the individual to participate in worthwhile activities therefore, reducing suicidal thoughts. It is important for the individual to be brought up in an environment that offers strong spiritual, physical, and emotional support at all times. This offers a sense of purpose to the victims while ensuring that the person has proper mental and health resources to deal with any depressive thoughts (Murray, James & Nelson, 2012). Counseling is important to get the victims to understand their pain and how to deal with it. This includes methods of coping and problem-solving skills like when a person is involved in conflicts. Counselors have hands on connection with the patient by guiding them through the depressing and distressing situation so that they overcome them easily. There is also medical treatment that can be provided to a person with suicidal thoughts. This includes medications to deal with pain and stress in order to ensure fast recovery and coping with mood swings (Bertini, 2009). Public Resources Available for Suicide Prevention Counseling centers are available to the public to provide support and coping mechanisms to victims. These centers operate through professional counselors where victims can access help within a short time. It is evident that these centers have inpatient and outpatient facilities for victims since some may need long-term counseling and rehabilitation. This is an effective method of ensuring long-term and possibly permanent way of ensuring that a person does not result to suicidal thoughts again. Through counseling it is possible to get support groups that assist a person cope by listening to other suicidal patients. This offers support and motivation to push on with life after listening to others and their success stories (Bertini, 2009). There is also emergency services available to the public when victims are overcome by pain and sadness therefore, the need to talk to somebody immediately. An individual in distress can use telephone counseling, emergency lines, and suicide hotlines that work without pressuring victims. These telephone lines and hotlines are important so as to talk calmly to a counselor anonymously without fear or hesitation. Many people with loved one with suicidal symptoms can benefit from the hotlines to get the necessary assistance possible. These are available locally within various cities and regional phone directories in a convenience fashion. Community agencies mainly run these emergency lines and they can be easily accessed for instant support. In other situations, medical hospitals have departments that deal with suicidal cases to offer support and treatment. These hospitals are in many states within United States and it is easy to get an appointment for a loved one when need arises. Mental health physicians are especially quipped to deal with suicidal individuals through support and treatment (Nelson, 2009). I understand these public resources are especially important to the society in dealing with suicide. The counseling centers offer help to those that seek help and they get to work on the underlying problems. These centers are crucial in ensuring an organized way of understanding suicide and its causes while also dealing with preventive mechanisms. On the other hand, emergency phone lines and hotlines are essential in the realm of health care and support. Many victims of suicide can have instant access to help whenever and wherever they are located to avoid a catastrophe. They operate 24 hours and this means they offer sufficient customer service and immediate assistance to all victims that need them. These public suicide resources are significant in dealing with prevention and minimizing suicide attempts within the society (Nelson, 2009). There is no “Rational Suicide” There is no “rational suicide” that need not be prevented because of the sacred nature of human life. In essence, many supporters of assisted or rational suicide especially in the case of terminal ill victims indicate that it provides a sense of autonomy and personal decision. However, it has also been indicated that most terminal or ill patients that request assisted suicide are mainly suffering from clinical depression. This means that these people do not make rational decisions and not forgetting that in case they recover it is possible to regret wishing for death. Research by (Brody, 2009) shows that about 886 people rescued from attempted cases of suicide, only 3% later go through with the procedure later in life (Brody, 2009). In addition, many patients who are ill or disabled are not fully informed their current situations and prospects for their future. These patients with serious conditions are therefore, not in a position to make informed decisions that warrant ending their lives. Additionally, it is morally wrong to end a life instead of focusing of saving lives of people at different levels. In this way, such assisted cases of suicide may be classified as homicide since it is murdering someone even though they wished for it (Brody, 2009). Conclusion Suicide is a major health problem across the world with an estimation of around one million people dying from this hazard. The major cause of suicide is mental condition that results in depression, mood swings, hopelessness, and even eating disorders. Prevention of suicide is crucial in saving lives through regular communication, direct contact with the issue, counseling, and family support. Preventive measures ensure that victims of possible suicide can have better chances of survival and productive future. In this way, various public suicide resources are availed including counseling centers, and emergency hotline numbers for immediate support. It is also clear that there is no rational suicide that need not be prevented because of sanctity of human life as well as moral values. References Acton, Q. (2013). Suicidal Behavior: New Insights for the Healthcare Professional: 2013 Edition: ScholarlyPaper. Atlanta, Georgia: ScholarlyEditions. Brody, J. (2009). Jane Brody’s guide to the great beyond: A practical primer to help you and your loved ones prepare medically, legally, and emotionally for the end-of-life. New York: Random House. Sundararaman, R. (2011). Suicide Prevention Among Veterans. Darby Philadelphia: DIANE Publishing. Bertini, K. (2009). Understanding and Preventing Suicide: The Development of Self-Destructive Patterns and Ways to Alter Them. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO. Nelson, R. (2009). The Power to Prevent Suicide: A Guide for Teens Helping Teens. United Kingdom: ReadHowYouWant.com. Yatham, L., & Maj, M. (2011). Bipolar Disorder: Clinical and Neurobiological Foundations. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons. Reeves, A. (2010). Counselling Suicidal Clients. Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE. Murray, S., James, S., & Nelson, K. (2012). Maternal-Child Nursing. Amsterdam: Elsevier Health Sciences. Read More