Depression and Suicide Prevention

By Merely Me Tuesday, September 07, 2010

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This week, September 5-11, has been designated as Suicide Prevention Week. It is a topic few people like to discuss but it is an essential conversation we need to have in recognizing and identifying the signs that a friend or loved one may be thinking of suicide and how to help that person before it is too late. Those who suffer from depression, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia are especially at risk for having suicidal thoughts and for acting on these thoughts.

Far too many of the questions we get here on My Depression Connection are from members who are either seeking help because they are feeling suicidal or from loved ones who are desperate to know how to prevent their family member or friend from acting upon their suicidal thoughts. It is absolutely gut wrenching to witness such pain and despair which causes a person to think of ending everything in order to get rid of that pain.

If you have ever had thoughts of suicide, you are not alone. This problem is far more common than most people realize. The following statistics and research provided by The American Association of Suicidology show the magnitude of how much work needs to be done in preventing suicide.

• The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA) released a press report last fall (2009) about their nationwide study revealing that 8.3 million adults in the U.S. had serious thoughts of committing suicide in the past year, 2.3 million adults made a suicide plan, and 1.1 million adults actually made the attempt to commit suicide.

• Substance abuse greatly increases the risk of suicide. The risk of suicide in alcoholics is 50 to 70 percent higher than the general population.

• It is estimated that 5 million people in the United States are survivors of suicide (those who have lost a loved one to suicide).

• In the United States, more people die by suicide (50% more) each year than by homicide.

• Over 90 percent of suicide victims have a significant psychiatric illness at the time of their death. These are often undiagnosed, untreated, or both.

What are the signs of suicide?

Sometimes it is very difficult to assess the danger level to your loved one’s suicidal thoughts. It is, therefore, best to take any mention of suicide as a serious concern, and get that person some help before the thoughts escalate into action. The American Association of Suicidology has created a mnemonic to remember the warning signs of suicide called “IS PATH WARM?”

I Ideation

S Substance Abuse

P Purposelessness

A Anxiety

T Trapped

H Hopelessness

W Withdrawal

A Anger

R Recklessness

M Mood Changes

Here are some additional warning signs of suicide from Suicide.org:

• Exhibiting a change in personality.

• Acting impulsively.

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Comments (32) | Add comment

jpw2008

9/ 7/10 3:37pm

hi mm

Part of suicidal thinking is thinking you are going to die and no way out

Most people dont know gods will for them

I cant plead ignorance and so must die

Its like betraying your best friend

You just cant make up for it

Thats my suicidal thoughts

Jon

Ricovring

9/ 7/10 10:18pm

Jon,

You have some good strong thoughts in this area. Thanks for sharing them.

Ric

CJinLV

9/ 8/10 9:39am

I agree Jon; your thoughts are very insightful.

Carl

Merely Me

9/ 9/10 11:54am

What I appreciate is that when you are having a hard time and maybe even having suicidal thoughts...that you do reach out for help...you talk about it...at least here. I am really glad that you are here with us Jon. You have a lot to give.

jpw2008

9/ 9/10 3:07pm

i dont have a grasp on all my negative thoughts

I dont have self acceptance

I dont deny I have a mental illness

although I try to hide it

Jon

Penny

9/10/10 2:41pm

Trying to hide it is something I do so often, it's just second nature. On days when I know I just can't hide it, it is unbearable for me to leave my house and go to work. I definitely know I need to work more about being more open and not being afraid to just say "I'm not feeling well."

Judy

9/ 7/10 3:57pm

Merely Me, it struck me as such a coincidence that you would bring this up today when I am dealing with my older son, who is suicidal right now since stopping his medication and deciding he didn't need it. I'm pretty sure that's why he and his wife are separated right now. He's been having horrible eruptions of anger over minor things, alternating with his usual kind self and he says he sometimes "blacks out" when he has these angry outbursts. Last night was kind of a crisis and his wife made him promise to get a doctor's appointment today. I talked to him today and he said he has an appointment with his therapist next week - I'm sure he didn't tell him it was an emergency. I'm hoping that knowing he will be talking to someone will help him until then; there is also a psychiatrist there who can prescribe medication.

It's such a helpless feeling and frustrating because I know he KNOWS better than to neglect his mental health, but it's just an example of how depression causes irrational thinking. He didn't want to talk to me because it "wasn't my problem." Well, it WILL be my problem if he kills himself or he does something to hurt my grandson. My grandson is getting especially clingy and anxious whenever they leave, as I'm sure he's sensing things are going wrong and his parents are arguing and it just breaks my heart. So, I will be praying very hard that things will turn around sooner than later and everyone will be safe in the meantime. As you said, killing yourself doesn't get rid of the pain, it just creates more for the people you leave behind - they will NOT be better off.

9/ 7/10 8:38pm

I just have to say that you cannot generalize about suicide. While I agree in many or even most cases a person can be helped after being suicidal w/proper treatment there are acute cases where a person is in such a tragic condition that suicide is actually a relief for that person (such was the case for my mother who was terribly ill w/a mental illness such to the point that she tried to kill her children before herself) & was in the process of getting a lobotomy (have her medical records that confirm 2 doctors agreeing w/this procedure) & my mother wrote some letters that she was actually looking forward to getting the procedure as in her few lucid moments she realized how ill she was. She was very tortured & is finally at peace. I never knew her--only her illness & unfortunately have inherited the predisposition for mental illness & have had terrible struggles myself w/bipolar 1 & suicide attempts.

I have compassion for her, though.

Merely Me

9/ 9/10 12:01pm

I am just so sorry Judy...that this is happening. You have been through hell and back with everything in your life...and now this worry. What has helped your son before? How long has it been since he has felt this way?

There is no quick and easy remedy for this...I am sure it will take time. It must be so hard for you...wanting to help but...having him not willingly accept the help.

I am really hoping that your son recovers and heals.

Are you hanging in there Judy? I want to thank you for always being my friend when I need one. I hope to be the same for you. I am so sorry that I have been negligent lately.

Thinking of you and hoping things get better...

Merely Me

9/ 9/10 12:10pm

Hi ME

Your story is a sad one about your mom. I am sorry that you lost her that way. You say you never knew her...did she die when you were an infant? My father died when I was four...I never got to know him either. He died of alcoholism...kept drinking despite dire warnings that he only had so many months to live. So in a way...he committed suicide...leaving me and my mentally ill mother (paranoid schizophrenia) behind. In some ways I have romanticized his story...in that he was a tortured soul...who had a disease...but in many ways I am still so very angry that he did this. Compasssion....yes...forgiveness...yes...but the hole still remains in me over his death. It is something I will never get over and despite the suggestions from others that...had he lived...my life may have been even more hellish than it was growing up.

Things are never black and white...there are always different perspectives...sometimes these perspectives allow us to go on with our lives.

I do wish to say to you...that I am sorry for your loss...sorry for your mom...and for you...because you lost your one and only mother.

Thank you for sharing here.

Judy

9/ 9/10 2:00pm

Thanks, Merely Me. My daughter-in-law says that my son has been sliding downhill for the past 8 months. I had noticed him being a little crabby at times, but never guessed it was as bad as she was telling me. He's one of those people who stops taking his meds when he's better because he thinks he doesn't need them. He stopped over yesterday, didn't really want to talk, but I told him I was glad he has an appointment with his therapist and is willing to go on medication. I told him to be honest about the "blacking out" during these rages because it might make a difference as to what meds they put him on. It sounds like big-time dissociation. I also told him it's all right to need and ask for help.

I'm trying to turn it over, but it kind of nags at the back of my mind. I have 5,000 things I have to get done by Saturday afternoon because we're having a family birthday party here and it feels almost impossible to conquer. My husband will be helping out, but he happens to be working every day this week, so he won't be able to do that much. But, I will keep working at it until it's done and hope that if something doesn't, it's not that big a deal. I DO have to cook, though - that would be bad if I didn't!

Thanks for caring, it means a lot.

ME/trigger alert

9/10/10 8:36am

Hi M/M: I say that I didn't "know" my mother as she became ill suddenly, out of the blue when I was 3 (I asked my father after she died by suicide when I was 15-years-old when she got sick as I had never known her "well", he said she called him at work one day when I was 3 & said she was going to kill the children & then herself & just like that--the horrors started). So that is why I say I never knew my mother, but only her disease. When she died it was actually a relief as she was really tortured & she was abusive.

I "miss" the idea of having a mother, but not an actual person. My husband had very loving parents (thank goodness as he could help teach me how to be a parent as my father wasn't all that great, either, as he was a "functioning alcoholic" & didn't much care for having children around as we did cramp his partying lifestyle; thus, he dumped us in a boarding school which was all for the best as I met my future husband there when I was 15!). We've ben married for 36 years now!

I see what the love my husband had for his parents looks like & it is so beautiful, but has been really hard to see him grieve when they passed away (in their 80's) & he still takes some time around their birthdays or the anniversary of their deaths to go alone in nature & spend some time just remembering all the wonderful times he had w/them & I see to have had that kind of parental love is a precious thing, but w/it comes the great pain of loss. I don't have that. Maybe I'm a cold person but I don't grieve the "loss" of my parents. I don't feel like I really even had parents.

I didn't have a real father/daughter type of relationship w/my father, either, & I could find compassion & forgiveness for my mother as she was clearly very ill (schizo affective), but I was very angry at my father for not protecting us children from her abuse. HE was supposed to be the sane one & he left us w/her alone even though she had already expressed her desire to murder us! In & out of mental institiutions & then he'd leave us alone w/her & I'd have to call the cops when she was beating my brother so badly I thought I was going to witness a murder. He was out partying on his yacht for the weekend w/his "lady friends."

So it took me a long time & finally my latest (yeah, I've had a string of them!) therapist explained to me that my father was ill, too, that he was narcasisstic (spelling? Seems like a lot of S's there!) personality & incapable of loving me or anyone else. He only wanted people around him who reflected well on him, "brought glory to him", which as a very depressed daughter who had her own suicide attempts & was later dxed as bipolar--I wasn't exactly a bright shining star to trot out at his parties for him to gloat about his "wonderful daughter."

In fact, somehow, he "fogot" that he had me as a daughter & found another woman & started calling her his daughter & she was bringing glory to him--great hostess on the yacht, beautiful, accomplished (lawyer; I'm a college drop-out; couldn't take the stress & ended up anorexic) & she dotes on him & SMILES & IS HAPPY ALL THE TIME (unlike me; my father got really angry for getting depressed & attempting suicide at 15, a few mos. before my mother did finally successfully kill herself; & why would a father be angry? Well, he couldn't take the cruise the yacht club had planned as the boarding school said he had to take me out of school for 2 weeks {I presume they said for him to get me some "help", but he just left me alone on the boat while I swallowed every pill I could find but he only had a few Dristan & aspirin}) & she calls him "Daddy."

I actually made up a name for him (a gibberish name that is half Spanish {was studying that in school} & half--I won't name the European language as it is not one prevalently spoken & actually would be indentifying if anyone were to read this story & the name of that country would be a definite indentifying factor) & never called him "Dad" or any name like that after my 1st suicide attempt & he was so angry at me about it & told me I had "nothing to be depressed about." Well, I guess you could look at it that way if I were constantly "under the influence" of alcohol as he was (didn't discover that coping technique for another 6 mos. or so).

Yeah, very weird & very hurtful, too, as I only learned about this new "daughter" of his & my exile into oblivion when my sister had her engagement party on his yacht (by this time I was not seeing him at all as I had young children & really didn't want to even have them around his lifestyle). At the engagement party I sat next to one of his yacht club friends who asked how I knew my sister (the bride-to-be) & I said I was her sister & she said she thought she had only ONE sister & said this other woman's name.

So that is how I learned that I had been replaced & that my own sister went along w/it (she also was a very beautiful young lady & happy & knew how to fix drinks like a bartender by the time she was 10 & would do anything to please "Daddy").

So for years I've carried that hurt of being "replaced" as I wasn't an acceptable daughter & he couldn't love me. When the therapist told me he lacked the ability to love me, that helped me let go of that craving. But by that time I was 54-years-old so I spent a lot of years longing for something that was impossible for me to have & through DBT I faced the fact w/radical acceptance & was able finally to look around & realize what I DO HAVE--which is a lot! A wonderful husband who has stuck w/me through a lot of tough times w/my illness (since I was 15 & he was 16; then married a month after I turned 20 & he had just graduated college at 21--smart guy, skipped a year; maybe not so smart marrying me!) & TWO wonderful children (34 & 31) who are successful & who have managed to get through some awful bouts of depression themselves & love me despite all my failings...

Speaking of failings, I am a terrible rambler! Sorry about that.

Probably because I isolate myself so much so I don't have very good "social skills" & just get to doing this stream-of-consciousness rambling...

LyraStorm

9/ 8/10 7:51am

Hi Merely Me,

Yes, suicide is a tough topic. Often people feel judged when they have suicidal thoughts, which of course compounds the issue. I don't think many people see them as wrong or bad for having these thoughts, it's just scary for a loved one to think the person they love is going to leave and as we all know fear can come out as anger, judgement, repelling, lashing out, etc. Plus most people want life more than anything and so they see it as a throwing away of a gift, or can think it's impossible not to want to live so accuses the suicidal person of attention seeking.

It's also very difficult to talk to someone who is suicidal cause they like to twist words around and get angry and turn your arguments for them living into reasons they should die. It can make someone who is mentally ill worse when having to deal with that sort of situation (I learnt the hard way). Still I agree that talking about it is necessary... just preferably with a professional who has no emotional ties to the person that can bog the conversation down... but certainly loved ones can help address that there is an issue and be there if the suicidal person will let them and help steer them towards such help.

CJinLV

9/ 9/10 10:15am

I agree; those pondering suicide are made to feel as though "life is their oyster" when inside they feel it's like a peach - fuzzy outside, yet inside is the 'pits'.

While going through my journal last night I came across a quote from an old TV show "Touched By An Angel" (1990'ish). It sadi "You don't want to kill yourself; you just don't want to live the life you've been living".

I wonder just how well that statement applies?

Carl

Merely Me

9/ 9/10 12:17pm

You make some very good points Lyra.

It is very difficult to talk about suicide and especially when a friend or loved one is the one who is thinking about this.

There can be a tremendous amount of anger...and the person can direct this rage towards you...especially when you are trying to help. The thing I have found is that...you can never let it become about how good or bad your help is. If you are trying to help...you have to lose your ego...you may be the recipient of lashing out but...the person may be like a frightened animal in a cage...you ever deal with an animal like that in the shelters? They will bite the "helpful hand" that enters that cage...they don't know any better.

Maybe I will write more on this in a post.

I am glad we can have such an open dialogue about this topic.

Donna-1

9/ 8/10 8:24am

Yes, Lyra, discussions about suicide are emotionally charged. It is almost as if there is an electrical fence between someone who is suicidal and everyone else. Get too close to them and you get shocked and left with little more clarity about the situation than when you began. They refuse to talk about it and drive people further away, or they spew out anger against themselves and others. I know because I have been suicidal a number of times and even attempted suicide 3 times. I was one that didn't talk about it...I didn't know how, basically. I wanted to just howl with grief and pain and couldn't see beyond it.

My issue (I don't know about other people's) was that I had to make some tough decisions and didn't have the energy. I needed to go to work and didn't have the energy for that, either. Depression and a recent separation had just drained me. It (seemed to) make sense to me to just bow out and leave it all behind. What I found out later was that seeking hospital admission during these times did give me an out. A safe place to be till I could recover enough to deal with my life again.

My attempts at suicide were the prototypical cries for help. I WANTED help. But all people could say was, "Why in the world would you want to kill yourself?" Or, as my mother said, "Why would you do this to me?" What she couldn't get is that I was not doing it to her at all, I was doing it to me. To end my miserable existence. She, too, reached her breaking point. Where she was out of answers, out of ways to help, out of coping skills. Maybe that shocked me back to reality. Because if SHE couldn't help, then I was truly lost. And that's when I turned it around. I realized there were other people involved, not just me.

Oh well, that's my story.

CJinLV

9/ 8/10 9:45am

Donna,

I was so moved by what you just wrote because you touched on a whole host of topics; the most profound being that feeling of aloneness. As Depressives, we all seem to share at some point feeling that we're the only ones 'out there', thus leading us into a downward swirl of despair; ultimately to our death (or the desire for it).

Carl

sioux

9/ 8/10 6:06pm

Dear Donna, I'm so sorry that you've had to go through so much in your life but maybe that's the reason you post so eloquently and help the rest of us. You seem to have come a long ways from those bad times, I hope that it continues for you. You're a huge asset to this site. Sioux.

Merely Me

9/ 9/10 12:33pm

This is a really good comment Donna..in that it gives us a glimpse into the mind state one is in during this time of thinking about suicide.

I think...many people are super afraid of going to the hospital. Maybe we can talk about this more in that...it can be a safe place to get through an emergency crisis. I am not sure how many people believe this.

Also...what you say about your mother reminding you...it is not all about you...what was it she did or said which...broke the spell if you will...and let you see outside of your own pain?

When I have felt suicidal...I twisted things to where I thought it beneficial for others...as in..."I am such a burden...I am not helping anybody...they will be better off without me." I said this on a hotline and the very good counselor said in response that...he knew no survivors who believed this...that it would inflict irreparable pain and harm to my family and friends...and that the pain would go on forever. This...turned me around. I began to see...that this was not a choice.

I can't thank you enough, Donna, for sharing so deeply with us. This is...the kind of detail that...really helps. You have been there...you know.

CJinLV

9/ 8/10 10:04am

It seems that every year at this time, efforts are made to better enlighten those around us to the stark realities & causes of suicide. I was shocked to find out that Ireland has an abnormally high degree of suicides (Thanks for the info, Rose!).

My firmest belief is that like Depression itself, those considering suicide are feeling so very alone & are in the true, real depths of despair.

Yes, I too had my own episode a number of years ago before I finally saw a physician & started on Rx. What changed my heart & mind? Picturing the faces of my (then) wife & my family once I was gone. Add to that, over the years many people have told me "I never knew you suffered from Depression!". Again, my being such a great actor (in my own mind) played a key role in it all.

Finally, to reiterate what Jon said about God was probably the final factor for me. Although we can quote platitudes, etc until we're blue in the mouth, the stark reality of a suicidal person is still very much a taboo in American society. The utter depths of one's despair is literally incomprehensible to the 'average' person. It seems only the true professionals in the medical community know how to recognize & deal with suicidal people; yet the 'learning curve' of the average person is still tragically flat, most likeky due to the stigma of suicide itself. Of course I'll step onto my soapbox for just a moment & point my finger at media for repeatedly making death look simple and at times, glorified.

How to enlighten the masses? I'm not sure. All I can say is that I would never, ever wish anyone to somehow personally experience firsthand the despair that those (including myself) have experienced merely for the sake of enlightenment. There has to be a better way!

Carl

Merely Me

9/ 9/10 2:09pm

So right...there has to be a better way.

It is amazing how many of us have thoughts like this...or have been to the brink and back. It is a horrible place to be...so dark...so hopeless.

I hope the people who do come to this site...that they realize...we are not talking out of our butts here...we have been there...some of us multiple times. We know this feeling and we have survived.

I never want hope itself to become a cliche or plattitude. Sometimes hope was all I had. It is taking that leap over the great chasm of what is here now and what can be.

It is so good to hear how each of us has crossed over that bridge...to not cave into those suicidal thoughts and to hold on. For you...it seems it was your family's faces. For some...it is the hope for another chance.

Thank you as always for your comments. I am so proud of all the members and of this community. It just keeps getting better.

Paul

9/ 8/10 1:25pm

I believe if a person confides in us that they are considering suicide, the most important thing, is that we listen to them. Even better, before it gets to that. I think they need more than anything, someone to take them seriously, and let them get everything out which they are feeling and thinking. They need help, they have run out of other ways of asking for it, or just don't know about other ways to deal with the crushing weight..

To be, in their own mind, questioning that suicide might indeed be their best option, then being ignored, not taken seriously, being treated derisively by people they thought they might confide in or trust, simply takes them further toward acting upon what had been until then, another way of reaching out. Another way of asking someone to take their pain, their isolation, seriously.

People with depression know how that feels, I've read it over and over again here. We need someone to listen, and we need to be someone who listens.That's why those numbers and organizations need used, at least tried. It's good to list them as often as you do.

Donna-1

9/ 8/10 3:51pm

I know people too that, when suicidal, want someone to listen but they don't want to help themselves by calling a doctor, going to the hospital, adjusting their meds, whatever is needed. That is really frustrating to the person who is trying to find a way to help. It is as if they are beyond the ability to help themselves. I know my boyfriend and parents called the police once when I had bought a gun with which to kill myself. They knew they couldn't help me, but the police could at least take me to a hospital against my will and order a mandatory stay and evaluation. Actually, this happened more than once. And I was always mortified when the police burst in, cuffed me, and threw me in the back of their patrol car, and it was off to the county hospital psych tank. At the time, I was furious with all of them. Now, I am glad they did the only thing left to do -- put me in a safe place.

Paul

9/ 8/10 4:15pm

I agree, Donna, that listening isn't always enough. It was only a personal thought among many. Just that, if no one listens, they leave the person to themselves with their thoughts, and weapon, in whatever for that takes. No one calls, until it is too late, or they have tried to help to the point where they no longer know what to do, and anyone who cared has gone.

I have seen up close what you describe, a 72 hour forced evaluation. Even people off their meds, gone wild. They are beyond their ability to help themselves, some one has to care, or do what they were trained for. I'm glad they did their job and helped you.

Merely Me

9/ 9/10 2:01pm

Hiyah Paul

I think that having someone to listen is absolutely critical when someone reaches that point of feeling that they have run out of options. It is essential to reach the person at a point where...words can be effective.

I am hearing what Donna is saying too and in some cases the person reaches a point where...physical intervention may be necessary. Donna...I am glad you are talking about this because I think so many people are terrified of such intervention but as you say here...it saved your life.

Thank you both for sharing your insights and your real life experiences. Paul...I know you have been on the end of things to carry out that intervention. I know it must have been very hard for you to do.

This has been the most open dialogue about such a difficult topic...as I have been a part of. This honesty is extremely helpful. Thank you.

Vicki, Health Guide

9/ 9/10 6:47am

Beautifully written, very informative.

Your commenters also write insightful messages. This should be printed in daily newspapers and read on broadcast news on a regular basis. It might not save everyone who attempts suicide, but it may save one, or even a few. The point is, it will educate those who pay attention.

If it is printed and broadcast enough, more people will understand by repetition. Thank you.

Merely Me

9/ 9/10 12:24pm

Hey Miss Vicki!

For all who read this post...Vicki is a wonderful writer over on our Multiple Sclerosis site. And she is also my friend. Many kudos to Vicki for reminding me that it is suicide prevention week. Vicki has written her own post for suicide prevention week addressing MS and suicide. This is such an important topic for anyone who is dealing with either a mental illness and/or a physical illness.

I really hope that these posts can help someone out there.

Thanks so much Vicki...for stopping by and as I have said many times before...you are my inspiration. I am so glad to know you are here.

Joanna

9/10/10 10:18pm

I feel like suicide is the only answer for me most of the time. But, is that really what I want? No. It is the hopelessness I live under that I can't pay my bills, I have no money to pay them, or I should say I don't have enough money to pay them. I live on what I get from Medicare after health Ins. takes their chunk and what my family will give me.It is never enough and it makes me feel like dirt. I am disabled and can't walk except with a walker and then not very well. I can't work and have never gotten through the lengthy app. for disability. I am afraid I am not eligble anyway because the only way I gotMedicare was to use ex-husbands hours. I didn't have enough. I don't think that works for disability, or so I've been told. So, I keep slogging along never quite making it and feeling like a loser. That's when the dark thoughts come along and I feel everyone would be better off without me. I've always had someone take care of me. Now I have no husband, no job,nothing. I feel useless and I see no light at the end of the tunnel. What else is there?

Joanna

9/10/10 11:19pm

I would like to apologize for my "story." I did not realize or take the time to read enough to know this was more for telling of others experiences with themselves or friends, families, etc. and not what was happening to "them" at the time as with me. I feel like here I came and dumped on everyone's parade.

Forgive me, I apologize. Wrong place, wrong time.

Paul

9/11/10 5:17pm

Joanna, there is no wrong place here. No one here judges the worth of a comment or if it's in the proper place, as long as we treat each other with respect they encourage us to write. .

You have value to us and you're as important as any of us. Maybe with time, we may be able to give you ideas which help. I hope you'll stick around and please keep writing here.

bipolar1mixedepisode

11/28/10 2:32am

And what if you've become expert at hiding all of those signs, even from your doctors?

zoe ashcraft

1/22/11 8:18pm

Hi MM,

I believe that the internet can be a very powerful tool for those of us who face suicidal tendencies...and this is the reason I'm writing. Some years ago, (and several computers ago:) I discovered a most helpful interactive site for those feeling suicidal. It actually had you write yourself letters- as if you were responding to a best friend- and it was somehow created so that you really did receive the letters in your email inbox. There were a good dozen questions ~ which helped one to gain a little distance and objectivity from the intensity of suicidal feelings, put the finality of the act off a bit- which is often all we need to do to get to a slightly saner place in our heads. I was wondering if anybody has seen this site?? I have completely lost track of it and really wanted to keep it as a resource for myself and needy friends I come in contact with.

I have struggled with suicidal urges for many years now. After one attempt that left me in a coma I really learned (the hard way) just how devastating this can be for one's loved ones. Since then I've developed with my mental health care physicians a pretty full-proof way of monitoring those urges when they are triggered; this mostly hinges on self harm contracts and doctors who really are available 24/7 if the need should arise.

For life,

prism

Depression and Suicide Prevention

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