FYI:
Every
100 minutes another teenager will commit suicide.
Many
of our letters come from teenagers struggling to understand
the suicide attempts of friends or family.
These are some commonly asked questions:
Q.
What
percentage of high school and college students who kill themselves
are male? Why do you think more/ less males than females kill
themselves?
A.
Seventy-five
to eighty percent are male although more females attempt suicide.
Males are often more involved than females in forms of aggressive
and violent behavior and their methods tend to be more violent
and deadly.
Q.
I've heard that suicides are more frequent around
the holidays?
A.
Suicides
are not more frequent during the holidays. It appears that
the rates are the highest in April, and in June and July.
(Source: Vital Statistics of the United States). It is true,
however, that if someone is feeling alone, depressed or isolated
these feelings often intensify around the holidays.
Q.
It
is often said that a suicidal person goes through a period
where he/she seeks help from other people. Does this then
mean that it COULD be ultimately the fault of other people
(because they don't appear concerned enough) that one decides
to kill him/herself?
A.
No way!!! Not a fair conclusion although it could
be a contributing factor in some cases particularly with the
elderly, or with terminally ill people.
Q.
What is the most common cause of suicide among
college students?
A. Ninety-five percent
are suffering from depression. If depression is combined with
substance abuse, anxiety, anger, hopelessness, impulsivity,
and desperation, the risk of suicide increases.
Q.
Besides talking to a suicidal person and encouraging
him/her to go for counseling, what else can another person
or friend do to prevent this?
A.
Going with someone to the counselor often helps.
If the person won't listen to you, you may need to talk to
someone who might influence him or her. Saving a life is more
important than violating a confidence, remember that.
Q. People
often get uncomfortable when one discloses something as intimate
and frightening as suicidal thoughts. What do you think can
be done to reduce this stigma, either of suicidal people,
or of depressive people? Can people actually "change" their
minds and accept someone who is suicidal?
A.
As people recognize that suicidal behavior is the
result of a complex medical and psychological condition and
not a sign of weakness, it will change. It will probably take
a long time to change.
Q.
What is the most frequent method of suicide? Is
it different for men and women?
A.
Sixty percent of all people who commit suicide
kill themselves with a firearm, accounting for more than 18,000
deaths each year in the United States. Firearms are now the
most frequent method of suicide for men and women of all ages,
including boys and girls aged 10 to 15 years.
FYI:
More than 32,000 people in the United States die
by suicide. It is the country's 8th leading cause of death,
and is often characterized as a response to a single event or
set of circumstances. However, unlike popular conceptions, suicide
is a much more involved phenomenon. The factors that contribute
to any particular suicide are diverse and complex, so our efforts
to understand it must incorporate many approaches. The clinical,
neurobiological, and psychosocial aspects of suicide are some
of the major lines of inquiry into suicide.
Check out our Hotlines
page for additional hotlines
if you need one.
See Anxiety
Disorders and Social
Anxiety
Check
out Depression and When
a Friend is Depressed to learn warning signs.
Recommended watching or reading: “Suicide
in Young Adults”.
More from the Mental
Health Library
Back to Suicide article...
or visit our Mental Health
section
'Attention
to Rising Number of Teen Suicides'
For recommended reading, see the list on “Suicide”
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