Suicide
Suicide
statistics across the world are quite alarming - there are around 800, 000 suicides each year.
That's one every 40 seconds, and the rate has gone up by about 45% since 1970. It is the second leading cause of death in
15-29 year olds. What's more, for every suicide, it is calculated that
there are 20 people who self-harm.
If we
look at just England, there are, on average, 4, 800m suicides every year (13 a
day). Suicide has been rising ever since the recession started, although 2006/7
bucked the trend, showing the lowest ever figures in England since records
began in 1861. London, Cornwall, Devon the NW and the NE have the highest
rates. Men are statistically 3 times more likely than women to kill themselves. There could be a mix of reasons for this - it
is said that "men don't ask for directions, never mind asking for help,"
they are more prone to addictions and are generally more impulsive, which means
they often use more violent and immediate forms of suicide, where there is
little chance of being rescued.
The
highest risk is for men in their 40s and 50s, although this is also a problem
age group for women. People under mental
health care also have very high rates of suicide, which peaks 1-2 weeks after they
are discharged from treatment - especially if they live alone.
The
military services have a big problem with PTSD, depression and suicide after
combat. For obvious reasons, this has not been widely publicised in the
past, but is now starting to achieve more recognition and attention - and much
more openness. Previously, veterans
would get either no military funeral or else a quiet one - even if they were highly decorated heroes. It is now more recognised than ever, that
combat can cause metal health problems and it does not bar personnel from military
honours and funeral procedures.
Suicide
is a serious public health problem but is not treated as such. It's a subject that is avoided by most people
- after all, death is scary enough as it is, and suicide is more so. Then there is the link to mental illness that
people imagine goes with it. Some of the
headlines seen in newspapers concerning suicide can be really quite
sensationalised. Even though suicide was
decriminalised in 1961, many people, especially the press, still refer to
"committing suicide." I would recommend that we all try not to
use this phrase as it adds to the stigma.
To be fair, it is not easy to avoid using it as we have all learnt that
the two words go together - but we should try.
It's not
easy to talk about suicide and it remains a taboo area. A typically common reaction is, "you can
talk about mental health, but not about suicide." Indeed, suicide
has been removed recently as a topic from one of the Sociology A Level
syllabuses. When considering the need to
remove the stigma and silence about the subject, this seems nonsensical.
It is a
good idea to remember that suicide is a point on the metal health continuum -
albeit an extreme one. As such, we should
all be encouraging each other to speak about our feelings, however difficult or
despairing they may be. The most recent
statistics say that mental health problems are reckoned to affect 1 in 4 of us
every year. It is worth considering the
following quote:
"The
average person lies 4 times a day, 1460 times a year, 87600 times by the
age of 60. The most common lie is I am fine."
Suicide
Bereavement
Suicide
bereavement has unique issues over and above the normal issues of bereavement -
guilt, rejection, anger, shame, numbness, isolation, stigma and despair are
common and often never go away. It is
sometimes described as "grief with the volume turned up." It is common for parental sufferers to "blame"
themselves for the rest of their life for "not doing more to help" their
son or daughter.
There is
a massive increase in mental health issues and well-being problems for those who
are left behind. They have much increased risks for suicide, dropping
out of jobs and poor social functioning. I think that we should normalise
this because, for instance, the majority of parents suffering suicide
bereavement have suicidal ideation themselves (and feel that they cannot talk
about it and feel discouraged from talking about it). The authorities and society do not encourage them to do so: IAPT
offers no support at all from those bereaved by suicide; CAMHS will help
children with ADHD but not those who find a family member dead by their own
hand - however grisly the means.
The
affects of suicide ripple out like a pebble in the water - individual, family,
workplace/school/peers, community, society. Robin Williams is as an obvious example of
this - though it is true for every suicide.
Every suicide affects us all eventually as it affects the society we
live in.
There is
a particular problem with stigma, as it prevents people from talking about the issue
and thus breeds isolation, insularity and despair. Although some stigma may be viewed as "positive
stigma" - in that it that encourages people NOT to commit suicide, most
stigma has entirely negative effects.
It would
be good for society to move forward in reducing and eventually eliminating all
forms of stigma about mental health. Bill
Clinton summed this up well with the following quote:
"We
shouldn't be ashamed of mental health problems. We should be ashamed of
the stigma about them."
Support
for People Bereaved by Suicide
Within
the last fifteen years, it has been recognised that more needed to be done for
those left behind by suicide. The National
Suicide Prevention Strategy was set up in 2002 and various organisations have
been set up since. "Action is the
antidote to despair" said Joan Baez and the following organisations have a
variety of strategies in place to help with both practical and emotional help:
Help is
at Hand - a programme that produces
booklets and has a website. Its message is "You are not alone."
www.supportaftersuicide.org.uk
healthtalkonline.org
Winston's
Wish (for children)
Survivors
Of Bereavement through Suicide (SOBS)
(believes
that everyone affected by suicide should be offered timely support)
ifyoucareshare.co.uk
facingthefuturegroups.org/
In
America, there is www.actionallianceforsuicideprevention.org
Counselling
is a good place for those who feel suicidal or are suffering the effects of a
suicide bereavement to start to process of moving to a better place. It is best to allow a little time to pass
before starting counselling - as a bereaved person is initially likely to
suffer feeling dazed, out of balance and unready for talk. In time, although it is unrealistic to think
anyone can ever fully recover from suicide bereavement, they can find some coming to terms, peace and
positivity about the future - and counselling is an excellent way of helping to
bring this about. I have worked with
those suffering after they have lost someone through suicide and am ready to
offer my support to those who need it.
David
is a fully qualified and BACP registered Person Centred Counsellor. If you wish to talk about a bereavement,
you can book a session with him by ringing 07578 100256 or emailing him at
David@eastcheshirecounselling.com
