Save a life! Read these signs for suicide prevention

Every 40 seconds someone takes their life; that’s almost 800,000 people a year  around the world. India reports 10.4 suicides per 100,000 people in a year. The truth, however, is that suicide prevention is a reality! 

Most people do not want to die, they are just unable to deal with the pain.

Talking openly about suicide can save a life. Not talking about it makes it worse. Your action of reaching out to a friend, acquaintance, neighbour, co-worker can restore hope and save a life. Take action; reach out and rekindle hope. Do your bit for suicide prevention. The points below tell you how!

Recognise the signs that a person is suicidal:

• Threatening to kill themselves
• A person expresses feeling trapped; that there is no way out
• Talking, writing, posting about death, dying or suicide
• Planning ways of killing self; research, accessing pills, pesticides, weapons or other means
• Hopelessness; nothing to look forward to
• Withdrawing from friends, family, or society
• Increased use of alcohol or drugs
• Anxiety, agitation, rage or continued feeling of anger
• Loss of purpose or meaning in life – could be sudden change in life

People, at a greater risk for suicide, include:

• Those who may have a mental illness
• People with poor physical health and disabilities
• Those who have attempted suicide or harmed themselves in the past
• Those facing difficult life circumstances particularly with relationships or their health
• People who have experienced physical or sexual abuse as a child
• People who have recently experienced a suicide by someone else

Also Read: This is the reason why some people are at a greater suicide risk than others

You may also like

Mind Your Mental Health: How to Deal with Imposter Syndrome Watch Video

Yoga for anxiety: 7 simple yoga poses to feel better Read Article

How to approach someone who is suicidal

• Be patient and calm while the person is talking about their feelings
• Listen to the person without expressing judgment, accepting what they are saying without agreeing or disagreeing with their behavior or point of view
• Ask open-ended questions (i.e. questions that cannot be simply answered with ‘yes’ or ‘no’) to find out more about the suicidal thoughts and feelings and the problems behind these
• Ensure that you express empathy for how the person is feeling

What NOT to do

• Argue or debate with the person about their thoughts of suicide
• Being judgmental about suicide
• Use guilt or threats to prevent suicide 
• Communicate a lack of interest or negative attitude through your body language.
• ‘Daring them to ‘just do it’
• Attempt to give the person a diagnosis of a mental illness