Suicide Prevention

By: Maryam Siddiqui

801

Suicide Prevention

Have you ever thought about how many people commit suicide each day and why? Well,
surprisingly one person around the world dies from suicide every forty seconds. This brings it to a
whopping one million deaths per year. You may now be wondering how much a person has to go
through to consider taking their life. To answer that, suicide is an act of killing oneself purposefully. In
some cases people who die or attempt suicide believe killing yourself is an option for curing difficult
feelings or a problem. This report covers the following topics: statistics on suicide around the world,
warning signs of suicidal thoughts, and lastly organizations promoting suicide prevention. Now lets
start off with the statistics on suicide around the world.

To begin with, suicide rates around the world are growing rapidly, as mental illnesses are
becoming more common. In fact suicide is the second leading cause of death globally, especially
among young people. Along with that, for every female suicide there are four male suicides and for
every male suicide attempt, there are three female attempts. This makes females get hospitalized 1.5
times more, than males for suicidal related behavior. Not to mention 90% of suicide cases are related
to mental health disorders. The top two mental illnesses are depression and substance abuse.
Moreover four out of five people, who die by suicide, have made at least one previous suicide
attempt. In addition, nearly 39% of suicide takes place in South-East Asia and Eastern Europe for
both males and females. This high rate is specific to these areas because there are many people
experiencing unemployment, impoverishment, divorce, depression or substance abuse which makes
the risk of committing suicide higher. To add to this, the global rate of suicide is 16 people per 100
000 population. Due to this reason, 1.8% of worldwide deaths are blamed on suicide. In fact Canada
alone encounters 4000 deaths per year by suicide. This means everyday about 11 Canadians commit
suicide while 210 others have attempted suicide. Furthermore the leading methods of suicide are

hanging, poisoning or using firearms but globally one third of people who commit suicide use
agricultural pesticides since they are easily accessible. Research has shown that most suicides occur
in early morning, after a sleepless night or late at night where drugs may play role. Along with that
Monday is seen to be the day where most suicides take place, whereas Saturday is the least. The
highest suicide rates exist in the spring months while the holiday season is under average. Some
studies indicate that the increase is because the seasonal change often brings modifications in
personal situations as well. Therefore suicide rates around the world are increasing at a fast rate, due
to various mental illnesses popping up in various communities where people are at risk of committing
suicide. Now lets move on to the warning signs of suicidal thoughts.

Secondly, people who attempt or die by suicide may feel overwhelmed, hopeless, desperate,
alone or helpless, but people who are thinking about suicide show some warning signs. The most
common warning signs follow an acronym called IS PATH WARM. The first letter I stands for
ideation which is forming suicidal thoughts. The letter S represents substance use, like problems
with drugs or alcohol. The letter P is for purposelessness such as feeling like there is no point to live
anymore. The fourth letter in this acronym is A that represents anxiety which is a feeling of fear or
nervousness. Next the letter T serves as the term trapped as if you believe that there is no way out
of a problem. Furthermore the letter H stands for hopelessness that is a feeling where a person has
no hope for things get better. After this letter is W that depicts the word withdrawal, which can
include avoiding family, friends or activities. The letter A symbolizes the term anger that is illogical.
Adding on, the letter R connects to the word reckless. This means when an individual gets involved
in dangerous activities that are usually avoided. The last letter in this acronym is M that is
associated to the term mood swing. This is when a persons mood or behavior changes rapidly.
Additional warning signs include giving valuable belongings or prized possessions away for someone
to keep. As well as neglect of work shows a person is experiencing loss of interest. Moreover, some

people who are thinking about suicide may run away from home or skip school to avoid disclosure of
suicidal thoughts. There are many warning signs but most importantly, whenever you see anyone
experiencing these warning signs or suspect they have suicidal thoughts, then encourage them to
seek help and support them when needed. The next paragraph will talk about three organizations
promoting suicide prevention.

Thirdly, there are many different groups and organizations publicizing awareness of suicide
prevention and diminishing the stigma attached to suicidal thoughts. A well-known organization that
matches this description is the Canadian Mental Health Association also known as the CMHA.
This organization holds mental health week, one of its major national events in the first week of May
to encourage people to learn, talk, reflect and engage others about mental health issues and suicidal
thoughts. No wonder over half a million Canadians use programs and services from CMHA. This is
because their primary goal is to educate people about mental health issues including the effects that
can lead someone to think about committing suicide. Another major program is Bell Lets Talk which
is a multi-year charitable initiative devoted to mental health organizations. Their main source of
attaining donations is from their customers, as Bell donates 5 cents for every call, text or tweet made
on the Bell Lets Talk Day. In addition Bell focuses on four main topics which are anti-stigma, care
and access, workplace health, and research. One of their major grants was $2.5 million to Kids Help
Phone. This money helped to enable new technology that would support the health of young people.
Not to mention Bell Lets Talk initiative has created a community fund. This is a grant between $5000
- $50 000 to organizations or hospitals focused on improving accessibility to mental health care. A
community fund was handed to Trillium Health Partners Foundation for their mental health
adolescent program that treats more than 900 young people per year. The third organization is the
Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention that is also known as the CASP. This particular
organization has one vision and that is to provide information and resources to reduce the suicide

rate and minimize the harmful consequences of suicidal behavior. One of its major contributions are
that they support World Suicide Prevention Day that is held every year on September 10. They
encourage all people to show their support for suicide prevention, to remember and commemorate
the lives of those who have died, comfort those who grieve and strengthen our connection with each
other. On this day, CASP reminds Canadians that we are all linked to each other, through shared,
experiences, sadness, hope, and determination. These are just a few organizations out of the many
that promote suicide prevention, so everybody can seek the appropriate type of treatment.

Therefore, there are many people who commit suicide around the world, but recognizing the
warning signs associated with suicidal thoughts is the first step to help those having a hard time. Also
by supporting the various organizations that help people who have lost hope is another excellent way
to show you care. Finally Harriet Beecher Stowe once said when you get into a place full of pains,
losses and disappointments, till it seems as though you could not hang on a minute longer, never give
up hope, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn.

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