SUICIDE  SUICIDE IDEATION – Act of thinking

about suicide or committing suicide

What is suicide?
 FACTORS
 Suicide is the act of deliberately killing
oneself. (WHO) DEMOGRAPHIC

 SUICIDE – LATIN:“SCUICIDIUM”=Kill  MALE

one’s self  YOUNGER > ELDERLY
 DIVORCED, SINGLE OR WIDOWED
 Historically and in today’s society,  SOCIALLY ISOLATED/LIVING ALONE
SUICIDE is still considered a taboo topic  CERTAIN PROFESSIONALS:
and in some cases, a criminal offence NURSES
(In 25 countries (within WHO member
states) suicide is currently still PHARMACISTS
criminalized, in 20 countries suicide FARMERS
attempters may be punished with jail
sentences, according to Sharia law) DOCTORS

 It may also be considered to be an act SOCIAL FACTORS

of honor  Social deprivation & social
According to the WHO: fragmentation

 It is estimated that each year  poor economic conditions –

approximately 800,000 to 1 MILLION unemployment
PEOPLE ARE TO COMMIT SUICIDE  Childhood adversity
YEARLY, globally, with 16 per a hundred
thousand or one death every 40  Interpersonal loss & conflict
seconds.
 recent migration
 It is currently the 10 leading cause of
th
 Financial difficulties
death
 BULLYING
 Mean age group: 15-29
FAMILIAL AND BIOLOGICAL FACTORS
 More common in men than in women,
and in the LGBTQ+ Community  Family history of suicide - genetic risk

 79% - low and middle income societies.  Non-genetic: childhood abuse or

neglect
COMMON CAUSE: DEPRESSION
 Reduced serotonin & 5-HIAA
TYPES:
 Reduced serum cholesterol (Horton et
 ATTEMPTED SUICIDE – Trials or trying to
al 1995)
commit suicide
PHYSICAL ILLNESS
 COMPLETED SUICIDE – Successful
attempt  Chronic and severe physical illness.
  Cancer 2x suicide rate deserve attention, THIS INCLUDES
ASSISTED SUICIDE AND EUTHANASIA
 Epilepsy 5X suicide rate
 This also includes the rights of every
 Chronic pain
individual
 HIV/AIDS
TREATMENTS:
MENTAL ILLNESSES
 THERAPY AND MEDICATION
 Majority suicide victims 1 or more
2 PROVEN METHODS OF PSYCHOTHERAPY
psychiatric disorders
1. COGNITIVE BEHAVIOR THERAPY
 22% suicides - in the first year of a
mental illness 2. DIALECTICAL BEHAVIORAL THERAPY –
common to treat borderline personality
 Risk of suicide is high following
disorder and recurrent suicidal ideation
discharge:
MEDICATIONS
 25% of post discharge suicides
in the first 3 months  Selective Serotonin Reuptake
Inhibitors (SSRIs)
 most in the first 2 weeks post
SSRIs relieve symptoms by blocking the
discharge.
reabsorption, or reuptake, of serotonin
COMMON SUICIDE METHODS (WHO) by certain nerve cells in the brain.

 FIREARMS – 50.6%  Serotonin-Norepinephrine Reuptake

Inhibitors (SNRIs)
 POISON – 13.89% The serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake
 SUFFOCATION (HANGING, ETC.) – inhibitor, or SNRI, class (venlafaxine and
27.72% duloxetine) is notable for a dual
mechanism of action: increasing the
 MISC. (SELF-MUTILATION, JUMPING, levels of the neurotransmitters
ETC.) serotonin and norepinephrine by
inhibiting their reabsorption into cells in
the brain
How is it an act of honor
 Benzodiazepines
 In history, the Japanese had This class of drugs is frequently used for
kamekazees short-term management of anxiety and
as an add on treatment, in treatment
 Terrorists had suicide bombers
resistant anxiety disorders.
 Traditional sacrifices
 Tricyclic Antidepressants
 More.
effective in the treatment of some
HOW DOES IT RAISE ETHICAL ISSUES: anxiety disorders(but not Social Anxiety
Disorder),
 Suicidality in clinical settings raises a
wide range of ethical issues that  BEST WAY: PREVENTION
 - RECOGNIZING INDIVIDUALS THOSE
WHO NEED HELP FROM THOSE WHO
FETISHIZE IT AND IDOLIZE IT CAN
PROMOTE INCREASED MENTAL
HEALTH.

REFERENCES:

https://adaa.org/finding-
help/treatment/medication

http://www.emro.who.int/health-
topics/suicide/index.html

http://www.theneuroethicsblog.com/2015/09/
ethics-and-suicide-are-we-paying.html

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-
sheets/detail/suicide

https://www.who.int/mental_health/preventio
n/suicide/suicideprevent/en/