Mental Illness Can Be Terminal

In light of the much publicized 20th anniversary of the suicide of rock star Kurt Cobain, increased media coverage of bullying-related suicides and my own recent personal struggles, I thought I'd present some common myths and facts about suicide. There is a huge social stigma related to mental illness, so much that many who need help the most never get it. The more education we get and provide, the more needless deaths we can hopefully prevent. This is by no means comprehensive, I intended to keep it as concise as possible. Nurses Announcements Archive Article

Mental Illness Can Be Terminal

Dentistry has the highest rate of suicide by occupation, right?

According to the APA, studies show that occupation is not a predictor of suicide risk. In one study of suicide rates between 2001 and 2005, dentists did not make the top 30 at all, for men or women. However, female nurses made the list - at #30. Age, gender and ethnicity tend to pose more of a suicide threat than occupation (Link to the chart High-risk occupations for suicide). White Americans and Native Americans are more likely to commit suicide than those of other ethnicities in the US. In all age groups, men were more likely to commit suicide than women, although women were more likely to attempt suicide and fail.

According to the NIMH, "Older Americans are disproportionately likely to die by suicide," even though suicide was the third leading cause of death of people ages 15-24 in 2007. For example, 12.7 young adults age 20-24 of both genders, out of 100,000 committed suicide. At the same time, there were 47 suicides per 100,000 85+ year old white males. It goes without saying that most people who commit suicide are under the influence of drugs or alcohol. These are attempts at self medication that have apparently failed. Other risk factors include a history of abuse, chronic illness, chronic pain, family history of mental illness and/or suicide, and previous suicide attempts.

Suicidal ideation is just an attention getting tactic most of the time.

Sort of. Most of the time, suicidal ideation is a cry for help. The person disclosing these thoughts is in extreme distress and can think of no other option to relieve their suffering.

Life sucks. It's hard. Only cowards and weaklings "opt out."

If suicide is merely an act of cowardice, then so is pulling your hand away from a burning stove. Most people who commit suicide or express the desire to do so, are in extreme emotional pain and death seems to be the only relief possible. The fact is suicide is what makes some cases of mental illness terminal. Over 90% of people who commit suicide are afflicted with a major mental illness, including but not limited to major depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and PTSD.

You just need to think positively. Cheer up! Stop being such a downer. Count your blessings! Think of all the people in the world who have it so much harder than you!

NO. Mental illness does not work that way. You cannot wish your way out of it. Disordered thinking is pathological and a symptom of an actual, real illness. Just because it isn't visible on the outside doesn't mean it doesn't exist. It's real, it's painful, it's disabling, IT KILLS PEOPLE. If someone had terminal cancer, you wouldn't tell them to think of all the people in the world who had worse diseases, would you?

Suicide is selfish.

Yes, it absolutely is. A person who can think only of suicide is thinking only of themselves. If you had a broken leg, you certainly would not be thinking of your family and friends. You would be thinking about nothing but the horrible pain you were in. Same concept, different pain.

If you keep guns out of homes, people will be less likely to kill themselves.

Yes and no. Firearms are linked to more COMPLETED suicides. Of course if there are access to guns, that will likely be the weapon of choice, and they are far more reliably lethal than almost anything else. If you keep guns out of homes, you keep people from shooting themselves, but there's always the rope in the garage or the aspirin in the medicine cabinet.

If we don't talk about it, people won't get the idea to kill themselves.

If you keep mental illness and thoughts of self harm or suicide under the covers, you're never going to know if someone close to you is ready to die. Talking about it is one of the first steps in preventing suicide.

You can't stop someone from killing themselves if they really want to.

Again, yes and no. If someone has confided suicidal thoughts to you, you CAN stop it by getting them help, because they've essentially begged for it. A situation like this is an emergency and should be treated as such. Do not leave them alone, call 911, get them to the ER, call a crisis line, and take away the means - guns, knives, medications, etc. They need the intervention of mental health professionals. There is always the possibility that they may walk out of the hospital and kick rocks on the train tracks until the 0315 comes along, but you can't control other people, and sometimes they're going to get their way.

I don't want this to seem like I am relieving suicide victims of all responsibility, because I'm not. People suffering from mental illnesses are unable to think clearly, but it's still up to the individual to choose to ask for help if they are capable, or to end it all.

I hope this was as much of an educational experience for you as it was a therapeutic experience for me. I've included links to my sources and other resources as well for further education.

Resources

American Association of Suicidology

http://www.afsp.org

National Institute of Mental Health

Suicide by profession: lots of confusion, inconclusive data

8 year(s) of experience.

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Home Health Columnist / Guide

NRSKarenRN, BSN, RN

10 Articles; 18,280 Posts

Specializes in Vents, Telemetry, Home Care, Home infusion.

Thanks for this article. Allnurses compiled mental health resources several years ago which I regularly update located under our Psych Nursing FAQ section: Stress, Depression, Suicide and Mental Health Resources

NurseDirtyBird

425 Posts

Thanks for this article. Allnurses compiled mental health resources several years ago which I regularly update located under our Psych Nursing FAQ section: Stress, Depression, Suicide and Mental Health Resources

Oh, that's awesome! I rarely check that section as I'm not a psych nurse. It's good to know that's there. Thank you for making that available.

Long Term Care Columnist / Guide

VivaLasViejas, ASN, RN

22 Articles; 9,987 Posts

Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.

What a fantastic article.....you've brought up a taboo subject and addressed it in the voice of someone who knows whereof they speak. Who knows, you may have saved a life today. Great work! :yes:

TheGooch

775 Posts

The one that always boils my blood is suicide is selfish and think of all the people you will be hurting if you do do it. I think it's pretty selfish of someone to say that to someone who is thinking about suicide. It's bad enough they're in pain so why not lay a guilt trip on them too.

Thank you

NurseDirtyBird

425 Posts

The one that always boils my blood is suicide is selfish and think of all the people you will be hurting if you do do it. I think it's pretty selfish of someone to say that to someone who is thinking about suicide. It's bad enough they're in pain so why not lay a guilt trip on them too.

I chalk that up to the difference between sympathy and empathy, lots of people don't know the difference. I believe they mean well, but have no emotional interest in the issue. There's an interesting video that explains this.

allnurses Guide

nursel56

7,078 Posts

Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.

Thanks for the article, NurseDirtyBird. After my dear friend took her own life in 1996, I read a lot to try to come to some sense of peace over it. I recall reading the line that suicidal people don't want to die, they want the pain to stop. Another thing that surprised me was that her family didn't want people to know how she died. The stigma is still there, unfortunately.

Long Term Care Columnist / Guide

VivaLasViejas, ASN, RN

22 Articles; 9,987 Posts

Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.

I too hate it when people say suicide is a selfish act. Believe me, when you're in that kind of pain, you are NOT thinking about your family or friends, you are only thinking about ending that pain. That's not being selfish, it's being desperate to find a way out!

jeaniekadinee

78 Posts

I heard this saying and it said " saying that someone can't be sad because others have it worse is like saying you can't be happy because others have it better.

"You just need to think positively. Cheer up! Stop being such a downer. Count your blessings!"

This one gets me! It's very ignorant and only serves to make some people feel even more alienated due to their problems. How can patients open up and receive help when they feel defective for being depressed, etc? I think people who just "sweep it under the rug" or pretend everything is ok without getting in touch with their own feelings are at a high risk for developing mental problems themselves. I too despise the stigma shrouding mental

illness. Great, informative post!

countrynurse09

37 Posts

Specializes in ltc dd/mr.

7 months ago my mother committed suicide. I was the one who found her. She had struggled her whole life with mental illness but didn't want professional help near the end. I used to make the unhelpful comments listed above (cheer up, etc.). I know there was so much more I could have done for get but didn't. I'm glad you posted this. Maybe someone will read this and help someone, if not professionally then personally.