A Word on Suicide.

[cyperian]

This post really got me thinking about some of the posts I've seen both in the past and quite recently. I've always had these thoughts in my head; what do I do, what are the consequences, what's going to happen, what's the moral thing, is this for real? But I've never been able to quantify all of this into something as straight-forward as a chart

Comments

[kriscynical]

Very interesting post.

I know someone who is unmedicated depressed and it seems that there is at least two times a week she says things about ending everything and not being able to go on. You can only react to that so many times before you start calling their bluff and praying you're right. Putting people through that shit is torture, and in a way it's like sluffing off responsibility on to your (suicidal person, not you) friends who are left to judge whether or not you're serious about your threats. It's absolutely maddening in both senses of the word. :|

[cyperian]

I really couldn't have said it better myself

[kriscynical]

I have another friend (A) overseas who ended up walking away from a long friendship (B) because B kept putting it on A's shoulders to keep B from killing herself and it just wasn't fair. A finally had enough and walked away, and I don't blame her. She couldn't take the emotional stress of it anymore. Edited to add that B also had an eating disorder on top of being suicidal.

With my friend it's boggling to me and makes it very apparent that I don't completely understand how depression works. She has a husband who loves her, she has a very small child, they have a house, he has a job, etc., and yet she is absolutely gawd-awful miserable 24/7. It's like none of those things, even her husband or child, being her the slightest glimmer of happiness. My brain just cannot compute that but I know that's the way it is for lots of people who are chronically depressed and should be on medication. In her case she has no insurance, so no insurance = no more meds.

[cyperian]

Good Lord. I really can't imagine what A and B's relationship must have gone through. It's not a peer's responsibility to keep someone from taking their own life - it should be given over to professionals and to the individual in question. If someone like A is lucky enough to have family and friends, they should really only be called upon to offer periphery support (such as giving a ride to A, telling A if they're worried, or if they see A doing things that the doctors noted as possible problems). Even that might be too stressful for some of those around A and I wouldn't blame them a bit if they had to detatch.

I'll definitely pray for your friend. That's really heartbreaking that she can't afford to even seek help.

Also: I'm sending you a private message over LJ. As I was typing my reply I realized that I wanted to say something that could potentially be a problem if I posted in public.

[inusdemoness]

This struck a nerve. One of my sisters is a difficult child. She acts out, does everything bad kids do, but when my Dad and Step-mom try to discipline her or get on her case she threatens suicide to shut them up. She starts crying and saying no one loves her and she should kill herself. It's all to make them feel guilty, but it makes me and my other siblings disgusted with her.

It's gotten to the point where my other sister will call her bluff and tell her to go ahead and to do it. It's stupid.

[akarii]

Wow. I read this article and thoguht a lot about it. Technically what the author say is perfectly reasonable and perfectly true. I can only talk about my own situation if I say that I perceive a crucial instance of uncertainty