World Suicide Prevention Day

Restored from the Empower Network archive (2011–2017), lightly edited to meet our current advertising standards. Views are the original author’s.

 World Suicide Prevention Day

September 10th, 2012 marks the 10th anniversary of the World Suicide Prevention Day: ten years of research, ten years of prevention, ten years of education and dissemination of information.

The theme of World Suicide Prevention Day this year is “Suicide Prevention across the Globe: Strengthening Protective Factors and Instilling Hope”.

Suicide and Us

Why are we so passionate about this day you may wonder – we have first hand experience of people we love who have committed suicide.

Stephen Reginald Payten
28th May 1971 – 10th May 1995

Stephen was young, energetic, loving, inspiring, fun, entrepreneurial, adventurous and so many other amazing qualities. He was a son, a brother (to Gem), an uncle (to Sarah & Karlie) and a great friend to many.

On 10 May 1995, eighteen days before his 25th birthday – he committed suicide. Why? Nobody knows and something that no-one will ever understand.

He was an amazing person who appeared to have everything ahead of him. There were no warning signs, no evidence of depression, no debts, no solitary behaviour, no reason for him to take his life. Not a day goes by that he isn’t deeply missed.

Peter Timothy Robinson
9th July 1963-26th May 2011

Peter was Sarah & Karlie’s father, Gem’s life partner for over 25 years and a great mate to many.

He loved nothing more than to be with his family. We were his life and the centre of his world – until one day he made a decision that devastated us and changed our lives forever.

Peter suffered from chronic depression. An illness that does affect so many people in the world. Peter was being treated for his depression and yet the medication and counseling apparently was not enough to silence the thoughts that lead him to take his own life.

Writing this article has led us to unwillingly relive these events – bringing with it tears, added heartache and an overwhelming sense of hopelessness that we will never see them again.

No-one can ever understand the feelings of those affected by suicide. It goes far beyond that of grief and bereavement.

Effects of Suicide on Others

Often those affected by loss to suicide (suicide survivors) are more at risk for becoming preoccupied with the reason for the suicide while wanting to deny or hide the cause of death, wondering if they could have prevented it, feeling blamed for the problems that preceded the suicide, feeling rejected by their loved one, and stigmatized by others.

Survivors may experience a great range of conflicting emotions about the deceased, feeling everything from intense emotional pain and sadness about the loss, helpless to prevent it, longing for the person they lost, and anger at the deceased for taking their own life to relief if the suicide took place after years of physical or mental illness in their loved one.

Individuals left behind by the suicide of a loved one tend to experience complicated grief in reaction to that loss. Symptoms of grief that may be experienced by suicide survivors include intense emotion and longings for the deceased, severely intrusive thoughts about the lost loved one, extreme feelings of isolation and emptiness, avoiding doing things that bring back memories of the departed, new or worsened sleeping problems, and having no interest in activities that the sufferer used to enjoy. They may also surround themselves in complete denial of the incident – an act of self protection.

There is no rhyme or reason for suicide but the affect on others lasts a lifetime.

Selected Global World Suicide Prevention Facts and Figures

• Data from the WHO (World Health Organization) indicate that approximately one million people worldwide die by suicide each year. This corresponds to one death by suicide every 40 seconds.

• The number of lives lost each year through suicide exceeds the number of deaths due to homicide and war combined. Suicide attempts and suicidal thoughts are far more common; for example, the number of suicide attempts may be up to 20 times the number of deaths by suicide.

•  It is estimated that about 5% of persons attempt suicide at least once in their life and that the lifetime prevalence of suicidal thoughts in the general population is between 10 and 14%.

• Suicide is one of the leading causes of death among the young.

• Suicide statistics may not always be accurate. Many suicides are hidden among other causes of death, such as single car, single driver road traffic accidents, unwitnessed drownings and other undetermined deaths.

• Suicide is estimated to be under-reported for multiple reasons including stigma, religious concerns and social attitudes.

• The psychological and social impact of suicide on the family and community is enormous.

• The economic costs associated with self-inflicted death or injuries are estimated to be in the billions of US dollars a year.

 Gender Differences

• In general, there are more men who die by suicide and more women who attempt suicide

Country Differences

• Documented rates are highest in Eastern European countries, such as Lithuania and the Russian Federation, and lowest in countries of Central and South America, such as Peru, Mexico, Brazil and Colombia

Who is at Risk of Suicide?

• Suicide affects everyone, but some groups are at higher risk than others.

• A history of previous suicide attempt(s) or self-harm is the strongest predictor of future death by suicide, corresponding to a 30-40 times higher suicide rate than the general population.

• People with a psychiatric disorder and/or substance-related disorder.

• Those who experience stressful life events.

Despite the wide experience of the above-cited risk factors in populations, the fact that completed suicide is a relatively rare event indicates that there are a range of protective factors that act to mitigate the effects of exposure to risk factors.

Sources:  IASP; WHO; WSPD; WebMD