Does Raising Suicide-Awareness actually help anyone?

[Typicallucas]

I just ran across someone who was going on about how it's important to raise suicide awareness...

Is it? Does being aware of suicide stop kids from killing themselves?

 

[Complexity]

Yes.

 

[Darth Rotor]

I just ran across someone who was going on about how it's important to raise suicide awareness...

Is it? Does being aware of suicide stop kids from killing themselves?

At what point does being aware of suicide initially present to a kid the idea to kill him, or her, self?

DR

 

[cienaños]

I just ran across someone who was going on about how it's important to raise suicide awareness...

Is it? Does being aware of suicide stop kids from killing themselves?

Probably not here's that chair you asked for and how tight did you say you wanted this noose?

 

[Darth Rotor]

Probably not here's that chair you asked for and how tight did you say you wanted this noose?

Who do you think he is, David Carradine?

 

[Tsukasa Buddha]

I don't know that there are people unaware...

But getting info out there on where people can get help and how it relates to their situation can certainly help.

 

[John Jones]

I keep hearing that old canard about people who talk about suicide never do it. That needs to be dealt with.

 

[Darth Rotor]

I don't know that there are people unaware...

But getting info out there on where people can get help and how it relates to their situation can certainly help.

Raising aware of options other than suicide, and where there is help when feeling suicidal, is probably the best way to help people.

 

[Professor Yaffle]

Raising awareness is partly about making it more socially acceptable to talk about suicide and talking about it does help. It is also about helping other people to recognise some of the signs that a person may be feeling suicidal and to help them know what they should do in such a circumstance. Its also about countering prevalent myths about suicide.

As someone who has had suicidal ideation at times, feeling that you have to lock those thoughts and feelings up inside your head and not let anyone even suspect how bad you are feeling makes it spiral out of control. It is an enormous relief to be able to let someone else know what is going through your head.

http://helpguide.org/mental/suicide_prevention.htm

 

[Darth Rotor]

I keep hearing that old canard about people who talk about suicide never do it. That needs to be dealt with.

Firing squad, perhaps?

 

[jiggeryqua]

Suicide is honourable.

Depending where you live, I suppose.

I am still, perpetually, slightly bemused by societal attitudes to suicide. If it isn't your life, to take as and when you please, whose is it? I'd always assumed western attitudes to suicide related to the body being a temple, life being god-given and so on, but that surely wouldn't hold here, would it?

 

[Darth Rotor]

Suicide is honourable.

Depending where you live, I suppose.

I am still, perpetually, slightly bemused by societal attitudes to suicide. If it isn't your life, to take as and when you please, whose is it? I'd always assumed western attitudes to suicide related to the body being a temple, life being god-given and so on, but that surely wouldn't hold here, would it?

You don't need to be religious to consider one's own life one of the only things one truly possesses, and numerous personal sovereignty arguments deriving therefrom.

DR

 

[Dr. Keith]

Raising awareness is partly about making it more socially acceptable to talk about suicide and talking about it does help. It is also about helping other people to recognise some of the signs that a person may be feeling suicidal and to help them know what they should do in such a circumstance. Its also about countering prevalent myths about suicide.

As someone who has had suicidal ideation at times, feeling that you have to lock those thoughts and feelings up inside your head and not let anyone even suspect how bad you are feeling makes it spiral out of control. It is an enormous relief to be able to let someone else know what is going through your head.

http://helpguide.org/mental/suicide_prevention.htm

This.

Also, I find talking to my kids about things that other adults avoid is really helpful in opening up communication. Like when I inadvertently mentioned a fake ID my kids jumped all over that and wanted to know why a friend of mine would have had a fake ID in high school. We had a pretty long discussion about ages of minority and drinking and driving and drinking & driving and felonies and jobs and databases and background checks. They got bored eventually, but they were with me for a while, so that was good.

The same happened when we read a book that talked about suicide. My brother-in-law committed suicide when I was in middle school, so my kids never knew him, and sadly didn't even know about him. We talked about him, who he was, what he was like, what may have lead to his problems, what would drive anyone to such thoughts, what would drive anyone to such actions, what anyone can do when they are sad or under-appreciated, what can be done to help generally, and what we could do to help if someone we knew was having such thoughts. It wasn't as much fun as the fake ID talk, but we talked.

 

[Mark6]

Yes.

Considering your handle, this is an awfully simple answer. Also unconvincing.

 

[Mark6]

Raising awareness is partly about making it more socially acceptable to talk about suicide and talking about it does help. It is also about helping other people to recognise some of the signs that a person may be feeling suicidal and to help them know what they should do in such a circumstance.

Now, THAT is what I would call a reasoned argument.

BTW, I talked someone out of a suicide once.

 

[Mirrorglass]

Suicide is honourable.

Depending where you live, I suppose.

I am still, perpetually, slightly bemused by societal attitudes to suicide. If it isn't your life, to take as and when you please, whose is it? I'd always assumed western attitudes to suicide related to the body being a temple, life being god-given and so on, but that surely wouldn't hold here, would it?

I don't think most of us here believe suicide is wrong, as such. (I could be wrong, of course; I don't, anyway.)

The problem is, most of the time a suicide attempt (succesful or not) is just a symptom of a disease, one that could be prevented. In most cases (in conditions like depression or bipolar mood disorder) the person is not in a stable state of mind when attempting suicide, and will later be glad if they failed. It's these people, not the people who subscribe to Bushido, that suicide awareness attempts to help.

 

[Dancing David]

I just ran across someone who was going on about how it's important to raise suicide awareness...

Is it? Does being aware of suicide stop kids from killing themselves?

The main things is this, when someone talks about suicide, ask them if they ahve a plan.

If they say 'yes' then get help.

Do not deal with it yourself, call your crisis line and talk to them.

I saw many many people in the ED after they tried to kill themselves.

 

[Dancing David]

Suicide is honourable.

Depending where you live, I suppose.

I am still, perpetually, slightly bemused by societal attitudes to suicide. If it isn't your life, to take as and when you please, whose is it? I'd always assumed western attitudes to suicide related to the body being a temple, life being god-given and so on, but that surely wouldn't hold here, would it?

Suicide is a violent solution to what is most likely a temporary situation.

it hurts other people and leaves a mess for others to clean up, bith figurative and emotional.

I talked to a lot of people who wanted to kill themselves and many who had tried, none of them said that they wished they had died, ever.

Suicide is respionse to emotional pain and sometimes physical pain, terminating your life to solve emotional pain is like fixing a broken finger by cutting off your hand.

Sure you can do it, but it may not be the wisest way.

 

[Dancing David]

I keep hearing that old canard about people who talk about suicide never do it. That needs to be dealt with.

Yeak well the people who say that stuff are punative jerks who never knew anyone that offed themselves. I have known two personally, it sucks.

 

[jiggeryqua]

You don't need to be religious to consider one's own life one of the only things one truly possesses, and numerous personal sovereignty arguments deriving therefrom.

DR

Well, I was clearly differentiating between a position in which ones life is ones own, and a common western attitude that one shouldn't take ones own life, which I consider to be religious in origin. Your comment makes less and less sense the more I look at it.