Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one’s own death. It is a serious public health issue worldwide, affecting individuals, families, and communities. People who consider suicide often struggle with overwhelming feelings of hopelessness, despair, and emotional pain. These feelings may stem from mental health disorders such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, or from life stressors like trauma, loss, social isolation, or financial difficulties.
Understanding Suicide
Suicide is complex and rarely caused by a single factor. It involves a combination of psychological, social, biological, and environmental influences. Warning signs may include talking about wanting to die, withdrawing from social activities, drastic mood changes, giving away possessions, or expressing feelings of being trapped or hopeless.
Prevention of Suicide
Preventing suicide requires a compassionate, proactive approach:
- Awareness and Education: Increasing public understanding about mental health and suicide helps reduce stigma and encourages people to seek help.
- Early Intervention: Recognizing warning signs and providing timely support can save lives. This may involve counselling, therapy, or medical treatment.
- Support Systems: Encouraging strong connections with family, friends, and community resources provides emotional support.
- Access to Care: Ensuring availability of mental health services, and crisis helplines
- Reducing firearms: Limiting access to common methods of suicide, such as firearms or toxic substances, can reduce risk.
- Promoting Healthy Coping Skills: Teaching stress management, problem-solving, and emotional regulation helps people deal with life’s challenges more effectively.
- Follow-up Care: Providing continued support after a suicide attempt or loss can prevent further tragedies.
- Managing work pressure: Managing work pressure of both job and family can reduce the stress of the life
- Managing financial condition: Discussing the financial stress with peers, spouse, elders and relatives can resolve the risk involved with mental and health conditions.
- Counselling/mentoring: providing professional counselling is crucial which can prevent further
- Psychologist: Knowing the risk factors and recognizing the warning signs for suicide can help prevent suicide.
If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, reaching out to a trusted person or mental health professional can make a vital difference. Remember, help is available, and you don’t have to face it alone.
By -Dr. Mrutyunjaya Mangaraj, Department of EEE-SEAS, SRM University – AP ( Amaravati)
