Am I at risk of suicide?

zimuche

Aug 31

This photo was taken just 7 hours before I tried to take my own life for the 3rd time.

Life is a concatenation of shocks laced with pleasantries. Life happens to all. As everyone has a chance of having one form of sickness or another, so do they also have a possibility of becoming mentally ill. And mental illness has been identified as one of the major factors leading people to suicide ideation.

To know whether you are susceptible to suicide, we need to identify the causes of suicide. We need to also examine the records to see which professions are much more likely to experience this condition and, finally, we need to learn about what can be done to prevent or reduce the level of suicides in the world.

What are the Cause of Suicides?

There's no conclusive evidence about any lone causative agent that predisposes any individual to suicides. In the absence of any such lone known super-cause, we're left with no choice but look at the four prominent causes of suicide. Before then please consider that so many people who killed themselves lived normal lives. Below is a list of comments people made about victims of mortal depression.

A close friend of one of my colleagues committed suicide. It happened as so many suicides do—out of the blue. A few days earlier, my colleague had spent the day hanging out with her friend, who was relaxed, upbeat, and normal.
"This photo was taken just 7 hours before I tried to take my own life for the 3rd time. This photo was taken in the morning … That evening I took an overdose that left me in the hospital for a week, I had no idea I'd try to take my own life in the morning. I was smiling and loved the way my hair looked hence the selfie." - Milly Smith
Zeynep Pattie was only 18 years when she killed herself. Two days to her last birthday, she had uploaded a selfie on Instagram showing her hair swept back and captioned 'Goldilocks'. She found dead on a rail line in what was ruled a suicide
" the Kate that we knew was incredibly spirited and jovial and I think this is just a hard time, ... It's hard for me to speculate what happened at home behind closed doors, but the Kate that really I knew was always with a smile."

*Smiling Milly Smith in her selfie few hours before overdosing*

From the above, it is clear that otherwise happy people can become victims of any of the many causes of suicide. Let's now examine the causes of suicide according to the available literature. One thing stands out, people's dwindling sense of happiness, selfworth and accomplishment conspire in one or the other to instigate the desire to terminate their lives. This is what a social scientist has called "three feelings that prompt a person to take their life: hopelessness, helplessness and worthlessness."

One thing stands out, people's dwindling sense of happiness, selfworth and accomplishment conspire in one or the other to instigate the desire to terminate their lives.

The diverse causes of suicide

Dwindling income
Inability to handle failure
Hereditary factors
Inability to maintain work/life balance
Presence of psychopathologies or mental ailments
Marital problems
History of attempted suicide
Excessive loneliness

Dwindling income

A German billionaire a few years ago could not handle his loss of business due to the global economic downturn. He walked into a speeding train around his house. When some people loss their source of livelihood through retrenchment, loss of business, etc they seem to also loss a handle on life. Out of shame that they are not able to provide for their family or to repay loans, they turn to suicidal ideation or the act of suicide.

Inability to handle failure

Success is defined by individuals in different ways. Apart from financial failures, there are people who see themselves as failures when they're unable to accomplish professional goals or to meet targets. Indian pupils are known to have killed themselves, not because they failed exams but because they were unable to make some very high grades.

Heredity

Some Mental conditions that predispose people to suicide are known to run in the family. Some of these include: autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, major depression and schizophrenia.

Although there are no definite reasons, it appears that many of the causes of suicide are associated with one or more of these. The rate at which any of these can be predictive is unclear too. What triggers suicide in one person may not have similar effect on others. So it is difficult to state classically how each factor may affect any suicide case.

Signs that you're suicidal

When suicidal tendencies begin to rear their head, the following signs may show:

Withdrawal from social life or social isolation
Feeling of worthlessness
Desiring to escape your present situation by dying
increased substance use
changes in sleep patterns
purposelessness
feeling like a burden
feeling stuck
giving away prized possessions
shame
anger
extreme sadness
intense worry
frustration
Mood swings etc.

Conclusion

You need to consult a psychologist or counselor immediately to help you examine your condition to ascertain if your symptoms are due to suicidal ideation or arising from other unknown causes. Remember, suicides occur because the victims fail to share their thoughts and fears with loved ones. Spiritualizing everything is also not the best as even medical and spiritual leaders can also fall to depression, a major predisposing factor to suicidal events. depression

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