Sept 10 World Suicide Prevention Day

CDfm

Sept 10 is the World Health Organisation Suicide Prevention Day

World Suicide Prevention Day

10 September 2010
World Suicide Prevention Day on 10 September promotes worldwide commitment and action to prevent suicides. On average, almost 3000 people commit suicide daily. For every person who completes a suicide, 20 or more may attempt to end their lives.
The sponsoring International Association for Suicide Prevention, the co-sponsor WHO and other partners advocate for the prevention of suicidal behaviour, provision of adequate treatment and follow-up care for people who attempted suicide, as well as responsible reporting of suicides in the media.
At the global level, awareness needs to be raised that suicide is a major preventable cause of premature death. Governments need to develop policy frameworks for national suicide prevention strategies. At the local level, policy statements and research outcomes need to be translated into prevention programmes and activities in communities.

We all know the highest risk demographic is young men ( and the incidence in young women has also increased).

The Irish Organisation listed by WHO is the Samaritans

08457 90 90 90 in the UK and Northern Ireland

1850 60 90 90 in the Republic of Ireland

http://www.samaritans.org/talk_to_someone.aspx

Handsome Bob

I read something the other day about funding for suicide prevention services are going to be cut again, even though they were initially promised that wouldn't happen. I can't remember the exact figures but I just recall guffawing at the difference between funding for suicide prevention services and road safety services. It's a pathetic situation to be honest, an outrage.

metrovelvet

Sorry but why in the name of Jesus is world suicide day the day before 911?

Otis Driftwood

Was it world suicide prevention day before 9/11?

CDfm

Part of it is awareness and the thing is its not about what others do or dont do but what you do to help someone out.

Earlier in the year one of my friends commited suicide and I doubt anyone could have prevented it. It can happen in clusters and within connected people.

Another of the guys goes visiting an ex classmate who is dying in hospital. I pick up birdseed and fatballs for a friends Mum who was widowed during the year.

So the general idea is that people get a bit aware about others who might be having a tough time. Governments can't really do that or phone up or call in to someone who lives on their own.

While I havent seen the latest figures this gives you a general idea.

Latest official figures show the number of deaths by suicide fell to 424 in 2008 from 460 the previous year, part of a downward trend that has continued over the past five years. A total of 332 (78 per cent) of those who died by suicide last year were male, while 92 (22 per cent) were female.
The figures are being treated as provisional until all the deaths have been subjected to a coroner’s inquest.
Given the population growth over this period of time, the rate of suicide is now the lowest since 1993, when suicide was decriminalised.
Ireland now has the sixth-lowest rate of suicide in the EU among its total population However, we have the fourth-highest rate of youth suicide in the EU, behind Lithuania, Finland and Estonia.
While in the past, suicide was more common among older people, the frequency of suicide is now highest among people in their 20s. Men aged 20-24 are most at risk. In addition, there has been a significant increase in the rate of deliberate self-harm among young men.
Official figures show there were 11,700 cases of deliberate self-harm at hospital emergency departments last year, involving more than 9,200 individuals.
The biggest increase was among men (up 11 per cent), the highest rate since records began six years ago. There was a smaller increase among women (4 per cent). Almost half of all presentations were by people under 30.
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2009/0903/1224253744089.html

Some actual suicides are recorded as misadventure or accident -so thetrue figure is under rather than over reported.


Thats my 10 cents

Mrmoe

I would have to disagree slightly. A better economic environment will help to reduce the number of suicides. You can clearly see in the last couple of years in Ireland with the economic recession that suicide figures have started to climb again after being on a downward trend when times were good.

I know lots of lads around my own age who committed suicide who would have on the outside seemed fine. Even today along while after I can not still fathom why they did it. There was no warning, nothing that would distinguish them from any one of us.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11219492

Japan has one of the world's highest suicide rates, with more than 32,000 people killing themselves last year. PM Naoto Kan sees it as proof of an economic and emotional downturn.

Rubik.

The link between an economic downturn and suicide is fairly evident here as well. A record 527 people commited suicide last year, a 24% increase on 2008.

Scotland has been running a very sucessful national suicide prevention campaign, called "Chose life", since 2002. And the key is prevention, but prevention costs money. Scotland, which has a similiar size population to ours, spends 25 million euro per annum compared to our 5 million euro.

http://www.chooselife.net/home/Home.asp

A change in attitude from the Government is needed, but I can't see it happening.

CDfm

Here is a link to the International Association of Suicide Prevention a WHO organisation whose 50th Anniversity occurs this week and who is behind the day

http://www.iasp.info/

Not all suicides are preventable there are links here on demographics and its worth a read.

@rubik the idea is we draw attention to whats on now rather than stuff we would like to see in the future.

Rubik.

CDfm wrote: »

@rubik the idea is we draw attention to whats on now rather than stuff we would like to see in the future.

Thats your take on it, its not mine.

CDfm

Rubik. wrote: »

Take your take on it, its not mine.

Sorry, if I seem a bit harsh but a lot of what is being done in Ireland is by volunteers and I dont see that changing in the near future.

Of course the area is underfunded but it would be nice to see what is available discussed.

Rubik.

I take your point, but I think World Suicide Prevention Day is as good as time as any to highlight the inadequacy of our Governments response to the problem and I wasn't the only poster in the thread to do so.

CDfm

Rubik. wrote: »

I take your point, but I think World Suicide Prevention Day is as good as time as any to highlight the inadequacy of our Governments response to the problem and I wasn't the only poster in the thread to do so.

Point taken and I often feel that the spin attached to government prevention programmes is just that

Here is a list to a national directory of services from the Suicide Ireland Website

http://www.suicideireland.com/helpful-listings.html?letter=A.

demonspawn

metrovelvet wrote: »

Sorry but why in the name of Jesus is world suicide day the day before 911?

What's 911?



Is what we'll all be saying in about ten years time. I'd also love to know when this day was created. To be fair, we shouldn't be thinking about a damn thing for the week other than that attack. It's been the defining event of this century so far. I myself have lost a close friend because of suicide but this isn't on.

Well, the first day I can find was Sept 8, 2004 then the WHO kicked it up to Sept 10 in 2006. It's a disgrace to the people who died on 9/11.

And another thing, we need to remove the stigma associated with suicide. It's not a mortal sin, sometimes it's the only option for a desperate person. Some people suffer untold misery and should not be forced to deal with that for the rest of their lives.

CDfm

On a Worldwide Scale 1,000,000 kill themselves every year and the World Health Organisation ranks it as the 13 th highest cause of death in teens and young adults under the age of 35.

The casualty count in 911 World Trade Centre attack was 2,792 and in Irish terms since 911 the number of suicides in Ireland exceeds that and if you include the North is at least double that and for the whole of Ireland averages over 700 a year.

I think arguing about the choice of a day to mark suicide prevention is a less relevant here as is religious stigma as a suicide does not care about social stigma.

Suicide Ireland have an on-line memorial section and if you want to put it in context of the type of people who commit suicide take a peek

http://www.suicideireland.com/view-memorials.html

metrovelvet

Do you not see how weird it is cdfm, given that 911 was caused by suicide attack?

coffee_cake

demonspawn wrote: »

To be fair, we shouldn't be thinking about a damn thing for the week other than that attack. It's been the defining event of this century so far.
It's a disgrace to the people who died on 9/11.

Oh ffs. What happened was terrible but far more people die every year from a myriad of other causes that nobody gives a damn about.
It's not the same day as 11/9 and nobody is going to sit around reverently thinking about 11/9 for the whole week so can we not just move on from arguing about the day. If it was any other day there'd be other arguments.

The casualty count in 911 World Trade Centre attack was 2,792

And according to OP 3,000 people commit suicide DAILY. Every DAY more people die from this - and probably even more as it's underreported - than what happened in one event years ago.

Anyway I think it's excellent to have a day for this. Too many people think it must be all doom and gloom and obvious leading up to a suicide but it isn't and they often appear normal. Reminds us that we need to think about our mental health day to day and keep an eye out for friends and family.

CDfm

Bluewolf you put it so eloquently

metrovelvet wrote: »

Do you not see how weird it is cdfm, given that 911 was caused by suicide attack?

Ironic maybe -but when you have 2 people every day topping themselves-more than likely young men- on this island we call home -that is todays issue.

I did not start the thread for a world politics discussion I posted to raise awareness of suicide in Ireland where the suicide rate in young men under 35 and the rate amongst the highest in the EU.

All most of us can do is reach out to someone who is having a hard time.

Novella

I can't actually believe this thread. World Suicide Prevention Day is really important, and suicide is something that affects so many people but yet not many feel all that comfortable to talk openly about it. It's great that there's a day to raise awareness etc., and by taking this thread and discussing how strange it is to have it on the day before 9/11... I mean, seriously?

Logical Fallacy

demonspawn wrote: »

What's 911?



Is what we'll all be saying in about ten years time. I'd also love to know when this day was created. To be fair, we shouldn't be thinking about a damn thing for the week other than that attack. It's been the defining event of this century so far. I myself have lost a close friend because of suicide but this isn't on.

Well, the first day I can find was Sept 8, 2004 then the WHO kicked it up to Sept 10 in 2006. It's a disgrace to the people who died on 9/11.

And another thing, we need to remove the stigma associated with suicide. It's not a mortal sin, sometimes it's the only option for a desperate person. Some people suffer untold misery and should not be forced to deal with that for the rest of their lives.

Are you serious?

I worry that you are.

Rubik.

The Samaritans launched a new poster campaign today aimed at men in the 30 to 50 age group. Should be seen in every train station in the country soon. Of the 527 people who committed suicide last year 422 were male.

demonspawn

Logical Fallacy wrote: »

Are you serious?

I worry that you are.

I'm absolutely serious. There is nothing wrong with suicide. There is nothing wrong with being able to choose the time and manner of our own death, some say it's the only real control we have over our lives. Some people experience untold agony every day of their lives and are forced to suffer because of the stigma attached to suicide.

Too many people are trying to tell too many other people what they can and cannot do with their own bodies and their own lives. A very good friend of mine committed suicide when I was seventeen. I knew the things he had gone through as a kid and I knew what he thought about every single day. To force him to live with those memories would be condemning him to a life of torture.

Logical Fallacy

demonspawn wrote: »

I'm absolutely serious. There is nothing wrong with suicide. There is nothing wrong with being able to choose the time and manner of our own death, some say it's the only real control we have over our lives. Some people experience untold agony every day of their lives and are forced to suffer because of the stigma attached to suicide.

Too many people are trying to tell too many other people what they can and cannot do with their own bodies and their own lives. A very good friend of mine committed suicide when I was seventeen. I knew the things he had gone through as a kid and I knew what he thought about every single day. To force him to live with those memories would be condemning him to a life of torture.

Most people don't commit suicide because they wake up in the morning and think "****, i am so damn happy. I have done everything in life, I have achieved all my goals and done everything i have ever wanted to do...nothing left of my 'to do' list so i might as well just top myself."

As you pointed out, it's normally the end of a long path of loneliness, depression and pain. This is EXACTLY why it is very important to have things like Suicide Prevention Day. Do you know why? Because countless people live with that kind of pain and torment everyday and find it within themselves to keep moving forward and to deal with this things. It's only by acknowledging that these people exist, have possibly entertained or even attempted suicide in the past and moved on and gotten over the issues that we affecting them so badly that the countless people who currently contemplate it will see that there is,and can be,a light at the end of the tunnel.

If you can't see suicide as being the result of a complete disconnect in society and a highlight of the many failures of the world we currently reside in then i simply cannot help you.

CDfm

demonspawn wrote: »

I'm absolutely serious. There is nothing wrong with suicide. There is nothing wrong with being able to choose the time and manner of our own death, some say it's the only real control we have over our lives. Some people experience untold agony every day of their lives and are forced to suffer because of the stigma attached to suicide.

Thats your own view and people who commit suicide do not suffer any stigma.

Through some charity work I was involved in I also knew 2 child abuse victims who killed themselves some years back. Over the past 2 years I have known 2 men and 2 women who have killed themselves and all were parents and, of those 2 will be classed as suicide owing to the circumstances of their deaths etc and the others not.

So I don't agree with you on that and I believe that even if they had GP care at least 1 would have been prevented.

Rubik.

demonspawn wrote: »

I'm absolutely serious. There is nothing wrong with suicide. There is nothing wrong with being able to choose the time and manner of our own death, some say it's the only real control we have over our lives. Some people experience untold agony every day of their lives and are forced to suffer because of the stigma attached to suicide.

Too many people are trying to tell too many other people what they can and cannot do with their own bodies and their own lives. A very good friend of mine committed suicide when I was seventeen. I knew the things he had gone through as a kid and I knew what he thought about every single day. To force him to live with those memories would be condemning him to a life of torture.

The vast majority of people who commit suicide, or attempt suicide, have an underlying mental illness, predominately clinical depression. One of the symptoms of clinical depression is suicidal thoughts. Clinical depression is treatable and therefore in a most cases suicide is preventable.

CDfm

Where would we be without Ozzy and Catwoman herself -troupers who prove there is life after a suicide attempt.

Halle Berry – admitted to Parade magazine that, distraught over her failed marriage to baseball star David Justice, she tried to end her life by carbon monoxide poisoning.





Ozzy Osbourne – not only did he supposedly inspire self-slaughter with the song “Suicide Solution,” but Ozzy admits to having attempted to off himself several times during his life, even as a teenager.

For a list of surprising failed suicides take a look here includes Eminem & Walt Disney

http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/7688

demonspawn

Logical Fallacy wrote: »

Because countless people live with that kind of pain and torment everyday and find it within themselves to keep moving forward and to deal with this things.

And there are some people that just cannot deal with these things, regardless of how much treatment they receive. These people eventually commit suicide and they should be able to do so without feeling ashamed with the choice they have decided to make with their own lives. If I should decide that this world is just a horrible place to live, and I cannot see anything but the pain and misery that we create, then why should I not have the right to leave?

This is nothing more than some people pushing their moral values on others.

demonspawn

Rubik. wrote: »

The vast majority of people who commit suicide, or attempt suicide, have an underlying mental illness, predominately clinical depression. One of the symptoms of clinical depression is suicidal thoughts. Clinical depression is treatable and therefore in a most cases suicide is preventable.

For one, you have no idea why the vast majority of people commit suicide so don't start making baseless assumptions.

I have been diagnosed with clinical depression because of events in my childhood and subsequent events in my early adulthood. I was prescribed medication that made me feel like a zombie so I chose to stop taking it and try to deal with my issues. Some people have issues that will never be resolved, or they don't see the point of living life as a medicated zombie, and so they decide that the best option is suicide.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

demonspawn

CDfm wrote: »

Where would we be without Ozzy and Catwoman herself -troupers who prove there is life after a suicide attempt.



For a list of surprising failed suicides take a look here includes Eminem & Walt Disney

http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/7688

Suicide attempts are usually a cry for help, nothing more. People who are serious about leaving this world do not fail in their attempts. I have personal experience with this as my sister made several suicide attempts when she was a teen. She just needed someone to listen to her.

Please do not hold up these attempts by celebrities as some sort of evidence to support you moral judgment, it merely shows that you have no personal experience with suicide whatsoever.

Rubik.

demonspawn wrote: »

For one, you have no idea why the vast majority of people commit suicide so don't start making baseless assumptions.

There is a whole body of medical research to back up what I posted. Whereas your're just spouting your opinion based on nothing but your opinion.

CDfm

demonspawn wrote: »

Suicide attempts are usually a cry for help, nothing more. People who are serious about leaving this world do not fail in their attempts. I have personal experience with this as my sister made several suicide attempts when she was a teen. She just needed someone to listen to her.

I am glad she had a positive outcome and I would like for others to have good outcomes.

Please do not hold up these attempts by celebrities as some sort of evidence to support you moral judgment, it merely shows that you have no personal experience with suicide whatsoever.

I do have experience with suicide and too much for my own liking - which is why I started the thread. A very close friend was successful in June and left behind a 14 year old son.That was not my first friend or aquaintance to kill themselves.

Other than that I have been involved in several organisations whose client groups were high risk.

I posted the link because it is in the public domain and they are people who are known. I posted an Irish Memorial link too.

Logical Fallacy

demonspawn wrote: »

This is nothing more than some people pushing their moral values on others.

Do you not realise that this is exactly what you are doing? You feel that suicide is a non issue and are basically doing exactly what you are accusing others of doing? The basic inference that it's a purely moralistic argument has nothing to do with this at all, it's not a moralistic debate. No one has stated that suicide is right or wrong, no one has judged in either direction the victims thereof, people are simply saying that suicide is an issue, plenty of people entertain suicidal thoughts that need help.

Kind of ironic that i have to do this, but that's a basic genetic fallacy at it's most predominant.