Unveiling the Imperative of Suicide Prevention: Awareness, Challenges, and Hope

Introduction

Suicide prevention is an idea often talked about to help people understand the resources available to prevent suicide. Over the years, the suicide rate has been slowly increasing, making it the third leading cause of death among young people. About 44,193 Americans die every year, and worldwide, the suicide rate has gone up by 60 percent in the last 50 years. Suicide affects family members and loved ones for years. The topic of suicide is not an easy idea to converse over. Suicide prevention is an important issue that should be discussed and recognized.

Understanding the Landscape of Suicide

Suicide prevention is saving one from committing suicide. Basing it on the patient’s risk factors, we use suicide prevention methods and treatments to help treat them. Suicide is taking one’s life intentionally. Committing suicide takes actions and planning when they are at their lowest point, with a little energy to think clearly and execute the plan. Anyone can be impacted by suicide. Usually, it affects people they are close with and their loved ones.

People with poor mental health and a history of suicidal behaviors are prone to contribute to this issue. The thoughts of suicide can touch anyone. Everyone around can solve this issue when they start contributing and understanding the issues. However, individually, only people with poor mental health can truly save themselves because they choose what they want to do with their life. Jobs like therapists are those who guide them away from their issues and help try to improve them as a person.

Suicide has been known to be one of the top 3 leading causes of death in America for young adults. It is the 10th leading cause of death in general. There is one suicide death for every estimated twenty-five suicide attempts. Each year, 800,000 people die from suicide, making it that’s double and twice the number of homicides. According to the article, psychiatric disorders, genetics, substance abuse, and family and social situations are the most frequently mentioned risk factors for suicide. It was also mentioned that the risk of suicide increases 20-fold for people with severe depressive illness and bipolar disorder (“Suicide and Suicide Prevention: Risk Factors and Treatment”).

Although there are other suicide risk factors, those are the more known ones for others to be aware of, especially depression and bipolar disorder. People with these factors are more likely prone to commit suicide. “The mental illnesses with the highest prevalence of suicide risk are major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, and eating disorders” (“Suicide and Suicide Prevention: Risk Factors and Treatment”). Suicide is also connected to other forms of injury and violence, such as violence, abuse, bullying, and sexual assaults.

The Power of Suicide Prevention

With suicide prevention, there are many benefits that come along with it. Suicide prevents comes with teaching us the knowledge and sight for warning signs among individuals. According to Johnson, a suicide program should include risk factors associated with suicide, resources for help, facts and statistics about suicide, and how to help yourself or a loved one. When it comes to saving lives, suicide prevention can reduce the number of deaths, allowing preservation among families and communities. Suicide prevention can improve an individual’s mental health, where prevention can identify people who are at risk of suicide and connect them with mental health treatment along with the support they need. By being able to reduce the suffering, people who struggle with the thoughts of suicide, as well as loved ones, don’t have to go through sadness and grief.

As there are benefits to suicide prevention, there are also potential challenges to suicide prevention. When trying to prevent suicide, there are limited resources. There might not be enough sources, such as low mental health professionals, to effectively address the needs of everyone at the risk of suicide. There may be stigma surrounding suicide and mental health issues, resulting in preventing people from seeking help and opening up to express their concerns (“Suicide Prevention”).

Due to stigma, people with mental illnesses may face discrimination, be bullied, be denied housing or employment opportunities, or become violent victims. Lastly, there is complexity around suicide prevention. According to “Suicide Prevention,” suicide is a rare outcome, requiring large studies to demonstrate an intervention effect. Because suicide is a complex issue with many potential contributing factors, such as mental illness, substance abuse, relationship problems, etc., it is difficult for a professional mental institute to identify and address all of the factors in a comprehensive way.

Conclusion

Suicide hotlines are available for people to call when they are thinking of doing it. Talking It gives the individual a chance to be heard and see that someone cares about them. The best way to help someone who is suicidal is to recognize the signs and reach out. They might express how they feel that they have no reason to keep going. Be there for those who are struggling, even if not a professional; talking to someone allows them to get the unhappy feeling out of their chest. Let them know things will get better in life, don’t end it, and be strong. Remind them that life still matters. Just give them a shoulder to lean on and an ear to listen to. The community should promote a healthy connection and protective environment, which can allow one to identify and support people at risk, follow up with them, help connect, and keep them safe. Suicide prevention educates and teaches coping and problem-solving skills.

References

1. “The Savage God: A Study of Suicide” by A. Alvarez
2. “The Virgin Suicides” by Jeffrey Eugenides
3. “Suicide: A Study in Sociology” by Émile Durkheim