A note on Suicide

Let me share with you a very interesting piece of information. Professor Simon Critchley from New York City's New School offers classes on writing suicide note to students as part of a month long series of performances, installations and lectures called the school of death. He believes that; the only way to really learn how to live is to prepare to die. He said that if people were more comfortable talking about death, there might be a fewer suicides. He initiates discussion on the topic by reading out the suicide notes of some of the notable personalities- from Kurt Kobain to Adolf Hitler. 

I did some basic research on how, why and what of suicide.  I was amazed to discover the single most important fact- Just as any other normal disease, suicide is preventive.  According to Dr. Alex Lickerman, one of the reasons of people attempting suicide is because they're crying out for help and don't know how else to get it. He says “These people don't usually want to die but do want to alert those around them that something is seriously wrong. They often don't believe they will die, frequently choosing methods they don't think can kill them in order to strike out at someone who's hurt them, but they are sometimes tragically misinformed. The prototypical example of this is a young teenage girl suffering genuine angst because of a relationship, either with a friend, boyfriend, or parent, who swallows a bottle of Tylenol, not realizing that in high enough doses Tylenol causes irreversible liver damage”

Yes, we are just social animals. We want to create a pact of our existence, want our emotions to flow free and we want to hear and be heard. However, discussing death is a taboo in our society. We talk about work, personal stuffs, love life; but what about death? 

"The worst thing that can befall us is to die alone," said Critchley, 53. "And the suicide note in some strange way is not to die alone. It's always addressed to someone. It's a failed attempt at communication." 


According to American Foundation for Suicide Prevention; sometimes, even close friends or family members don’t know that their loved one is depressed and is contemplating suicide. People who are depressed don’t always act the way we expect they would. They may not seem sad, tearful, or withdrawn. Men who are depressed may seem angry or irritable rather than sad. Not all people who end their lives are depressed. Some experience anxiety, are abusing drugs or alcohol, or have an eating disorder. For teens, becoming physically aggressive or destructive, or persistently breaking rules, is a risk factor for suicide.

Connection with family, peers, community and social help-lines offers platform for communication and to resolve issues on suicides. A National Suicide Prevention Lifeline ‘1-800-273-Talk (8255) exists in facebook which provides aids to people if a person or someone they know exhibits warning signs of suicide. Also, WHO is providing helping hands to people around the globe through a Suicide Prevention network (SUPRE) Various non-profit organizations exist such as the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention which serves crisis hotlines. A group called To Write Love on Her Arms have been promoted using social media to reach more people in need.

Life Counts!!

All we need to do is to be aware and talk about it.

As a suicide prevention initiative, this sign on the Golden Gate Bridge promotes a special telephone, available on the bridge itself, with which persons considering suicide can connect to a crisis hotline.

Problems are inevitable. When we face them, we have two choices- we can either take the problem out of our life or take our life out of the problem…the choice is ours!!!