PLEASE READ: Sucide Facts and Prevention

Today I found out that an old friend of mine just committed suicide. The news took me by storm. we all knew that he had problems but no one saw this coming, no one. I just wanted to take a moment now to remind everyone how precious life really is.

As most of you know, for the past year or so I've been going through a really rough time. Sometimes it seemed as if the sadness just completely consumed me, and sometimes you forget that there is light and hope surrounding the darkness. Without my friends' help I never would of made through this, so to all my friends my sincerest thanks.

So remember my friends, when life is getting you down and it seems like there is no hope, you've got a friend here that'll listen. Life is precious, please don't be stupid, no problem is ever that big.

R.I.P. Casey
We all miss you.



Facts

The Problem

* Suicide took the lives of 29,199 Americans in 1999.1
* More people die from suicide than from homicide. In 1999, there were 1.7 times as many suicides as homicides.1
* Overall, suicide is the 11th leading cause of death for all Americans, and is the third leading cause of death for young people aged 15-24.1
* Males are four times more likely to die from suicide than are females.1 However, females are more likely to attempt suicide than are males.2
* 1999, white males accounted for 72% of all suicides. Together, white males and white females accounted for over 90% of all suicides.1 However, during the period from 1979-1992, suicide rates for Native Americans (a category that includes American Indians and Alaska Natives) were about 1.5 times the national rates. There was a disproportionate number of suicides among young male Native Americans during this period, as males 15-24
* Suicide rates are generally higher than the national average in the western states and lower in the eastern and Midwestern states.4
* Nearly 3 of every 5 suicides in 1999 (57%) were committed with a firearm.1

Suicide Among the Elderly

* Suicide rates increase with age and are highest among Americans aged 65 years and older. The ten year period, 1980-1990, was the first decade since the 1940s that the suicide rate for older residents rose instead of declined.5
* Men accounted for 84% of suicides among persons aged 65 years and older in 1999.1
* From 1980-1998, the largest relative increases in suicide rates occurred among those 80-84 years of age. The rate for men in this age group increased 17% (from 43.5 per 100,000 to 52.0).1,6
* Firearms were the most common method of suicide by both males and females, 65 years and older, 1998, accounting for 78.5% of male and 35.0% of female suicides in that age group.1
* Suicide rates among the elderly are highest for those who are divorced or widowed. In 1992, the rate for divorced or widowed men in this age group was 2.7 times that for married men, 1.4 times that for never-married men, and over 17 times that for married women. The rate for divorced or widowed women was 1.8 times that for married women and 1.4 times that for never-married women.6
* Risk factors for suicide among older persons differ from those among the young. Older persons have a higher prevalence of depression, a greater use of highly lethal methods and social isolation. They also make fewer attempts per completed suicide, have a higher-male-to-female ratio than other groups, have often visited a health-care provider before their suicide, and have more physical illnesses.7

Suicide Among the Young

* Persons under age 25 accounted for 14% of all suicides in 1999.1 From 1952-1995, the incidence of suicide among adolescents and young adults nearly tripled. From 1980-1997, the rate of suicide among persons aged 15-19 years increased by 11% and among persons aged 10-14 years by 109%. From 1980-1996, the rate increased 105% for African-American males aged 15-19.1,8
* For young people 15-24 years old, suicide is the third leading cause of death, behind unintentional injury and homicide. In 1999, more teenagers and young adults died from suicide than from cancer, heart disease, AIDS, birth defects, stroke, and chronic lung disease combined.1
* Among persons aged 15-19 years, firearm-related suicides accounted for more than 60% of the increase in the overall rate of suicide from 1980-1997.1
* The risk for suicide among young people is greatest among young white males; however, from 1980 through 1995, suicide rates increased most rapidly among young black males.9 Although suicide among young children is a rare event, the dramatic increase in the rate among persons aged 10-14 years underscores the urgent need for intensifying efforts to prevent suicide among persons in this age group.

Someone You Know is Suicidal

The Journal of the American Medical Association has reported that 95% of all suicides occur at the peak of a depressive episode. Education, recognition and treatment are the keys to suicide prevention.

KNOW WHAT TO WATCH FOR

Symptoms of Depression
Warning Signs of Suicide

KNOW WHAT TO DO

Stigma associated with depressive illnesses can prevent people from getting help. Your willingness to talk about depression and suicide with a friend, family member, or co-worker can be the first step in getting help and preventing suicide.

If you see the warning signs of suicide…

Begin a dialogue by asking questions. Suicidal thoughts are common with depressive illnesses and your willingness to talk about it in a nonjudgmental way can be the push a person needs to get help. Questions to ask:

“Do you ever feel so badly that you think of suicide?”

“Do you have a plan?”

“Do you know when you would do it (today, next week)?"

“Do you have access to what you would use?”

Asking these questions will allow you to determine if your friend is in immediate danger, and get help if needed. A suicidal person should see a doctor or psychiatrist immediately. Calling 911 or going to a hospital emergency room are valid options. Always take thoughts of or plans for suicide seriously.

Never keep a plan for suicide a secret. Don’t worry about endangering a friendship if you truly feel a life is in danger. It's better to regret something you did, than something you didn't do to help a friend.

Don't try to minimize problems or shame a person into changing her mind. Your opinion of a person's situation is irrelevant. Trying to convince a person it's not that bad, or that she has everything to live for will only increase her feelings of guilt and hopelessness. Reassure her help is available, that depression is treatable, and that suicidal feelings are temporary.

If you feel the person isn't in immediate danger, acknowledge the pain as legitimate and offer to work together to get help. Make sure you follow through. This is one instance where you must be tenacious in your follow-up. Help find a doctor or a mental health professional, participate in making the first phone call, or go along to the first appointment. If you're in a position to help, don't assume that your persistence is unwanted or intrusive. Risking your feelings to help save a life is a risk worth taking.


for more information goto www.afsp.org