Suicide : Suicide And Depression

(2009) argues that “prisoners have a constitutional right to adequate health care, including mental health treatment and the growth of local correctional populations has strained the limited capacity of jails to respond to the health needs of inmates.” The study attempts to provide evidence of high percentages of inmates with severe mental illness while confronting the misconception of the gender disparity that severe mental illness is more prevalent in men. Steadman et al. (2009) believes that determining rates of inmates with mental illness is a first step to begin exploring alternatives to incarceration. “According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, during the 12 months ending at midyear 2007, there were 13 million admissions to local jails in the United States,” highlighted by Steadman et al.

In American jails there is a frightening amount of inmate suicides that occur, and seem to stay under the radar and unspoken about. There are many different contributing factors that can lead to an inmate ultimately choosing to take his or her own life. Being sentenced to jail can be difficult for various inmates to handle and one can have a risk of developing a mental illness if he or she has not already been diagnosed as mentally ill. A mental illness can become a battle with one’s self that some cannot win, and only see darkness ahead. Inmates being confined in jail can lead to a breaking point, which is suicide. Other factors include inmates being stressed out and fearing imprisonment. Jails across the United States have to take initiative regarding inmate suicides or else the suicide rates could increase. Without treatment, awareness, and prevention there will be no improvement in decreasing the amount of inmate suicides. The conversation of inmate suicide has to be had between jail officials, inmates, and society because there is help out there and everyone must know that it is not cowardly to ask for help.

Felson, R. B., Silver, E., & Remster, B. (2012). Mental disorder and offending in prison. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 39(2), 125-143.

According to a 2006 Bureau of Justice Statistics report found that over half of the inmates in both prisons and in jails had a problem concerning their mental health (James & Glaze, 2006). The estimates in this report were separated by federal prisons, which contained 45 percent of inmates suffering from mental illness, 56 percent in state prisons, and

of offense. The person is usually a 22 year old single whit male who has been

Psychiatric and general hospitals are required to, “Conduct a risk assessment that identifies specific characteriscts of the individual served and environmental features that may increase or decrease the risk for suicide” (Joint Commission, 2010). Many psychiatric hospitals have extended their services in the last few decades to drug and alcohol rehabilitation and these admissions and their environments will now require a complete suicide risk assessment, if it has not been done so before.

In 2010 of April Danarory Countryman of Westchester County Prison did something that an unusually high number of state prison inmates have done, she hanged herself in her cell. Countryman’s suicide was one of 17 in state in state lockups in 2010. During the year of 2010 suicide rates went from 17.8 suicides per 100,000 inmates to 20.7. This is five times more the suicides that have been going on in the recent years. (Parrish1)

Skeem, Sara Manchak and Jillian K. Peterson (2011) compared males and females in jail who suffer from schizophrenia, major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder to the general U.S population. They found that males incarcerated in jail are three times more likely to suffer from schizophrenia, major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder than males in the general population and females incarcerated in jail are nearly twice as likely to suffer from schizophrenia, major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder as females in the general population. (Skeem, Manchak, Peterson, 2011) Amanda C. Pustilnik (2005) highlighted the findings that more mentally ill individuals are incarcerated in prisons and jails than being treated in mental health care facilities. “Annually, over 300,000 adults and children with mental illnesses many of whom have committed only a public order infraction or no offense at all-are confined in state and federal prisons, jails, and juvenile corrections facilities. A mere 60,000 people with such conditions are treated annually in medical facilities. Thus, for every one person treated in a hospital, about five people are treated, or merely confined, in penal facilities. Prisons have become the largest mental health facilities in the United States.” (Pustilnik, 2005: 226, 227,

Huey, M. & Mcnulty, T. (2005). Institutional Conditions and Prison Suicide: Conditional Effects of Deprivation and Overcrowding. The Prison Journal, 85(4), 490-515.doi:10.1177/0032885505282258. Sage Publications.

Jails and prisons are overcrowded unpleasant environments which make it harder on mentally ill inmates causing behavioral problems, especially those not treated. Failing to provide treatment for mentally ill inmates is another problem they face. Leaving these inmates without treatment for extended periods in dangerous and can detrimental for the mentally inmates and those around them. Failing to provide treatment happens more frequently in county jails than prisons. Without treatment the mentally ill symptoms worsen and lead to them becoming victimized or even committing suicide. Furthermore, mentally ill inmates are victimized more often than other prisoner. In fact, “1 in 12 prisoners with a mental disorder reported at least one incident of sexual victimization by another inmate over a six-month period, compared with 1 in 33 male inmates without a mental disorder” (Ditton, 1999). This sad reality can ultimately lead to another problem mentally ill inmate’s face. Not surprising, suicide in prisons and jails occur frequently more among inmates who are mentally ill. A study of 154 suicides in California prison system reported that 73% had a history of mental treatment (Dittion, 1999). Placing the mentally ill in prisons and jails instead of mental hospital can eventually lead to this sad truth of mentally ill inmates taking their own lives. For one Harrisburg man, his schizophrenia went from manageable to beyond control after he was incarcerated. Diagnosed at the early age of twenty, Betty’s son was stable and taking his medications. However, his health took a turn for the worse; he was arrested for selling drugs and put into a state prison for three years. His mental health deteriorated drastically, as he cycled in and out of jail through most of his life as most mentally ill do, he became worse and worse each time. Betty recalls visiting her son in prison, his hair

Additionally, Roberts and Jackson criticize Bonta and Gendreau by contending that their ramifications regarding suicide risk are considerably misrepresented. Bonta and Gendreau 's estimates of suicide risk due to long-term imprisonment are solely founded on suicides perpetrated during confinement (Jackson & Roberts, 1991, p. 559). According to Roberts and Jackson, however, the complication with this is that neither Bonta and Gendreau nor anyone else has studied suicide risk of previous offenders who are no longer in jail (Jackson & Roberts, 1991, p. 559). The qualitative approach that Roberts and Jackson follow here is taking all variables into consideration. Qualitative research involves no ruling out variables and ensuring that they are all considered (Palys, 2014, p. 16). Evidently, Bonta and Gendreau do not employ this qualitative method as they do not deduce that it was imperative to incorporate this variable into their study. Roberts and Jackson also employ the qualitative approach of using verbal reports rather than quantifying responses (Palys, 2014, p. 16). To elucidate,

The author points out that inner city gang warfare, prison riots and provocative behavior against authority or danger is a sign on uncommunicated suicidal tendencies. Dr. Elizabeth Ford, who was for many years at Bellevue Hospital which treats and houses some of Rikers Island jailed prisoners who are or have become mentally ill, relates a suicide in her 2017 book "Sometimes Amazing Things Happen”. The patient (named Franklin) had been going to the group therapy sessions, taking his medication, and interacting with other patients by playing board games and ping pong. Franklin was being checked on every 15 minutes, but figured out the lapse, tied a sheet around the bars and his neck and dropped by his neck.

Many people at one point in their life have experienced the feeling of hopelessness. Hopelessness is described as a feeling of despair. Most people experience despair after a death, trauma, or being separated from a person or thing. Out in the world today, there are so many outlooks and strategies that are willing to help with this feeling of hopelessness. Outlooks such as people or even making plans and setting goals. Setting small goals and accomplishing them are a great way to boost self-esteem and prevent or reduce hopelessness. Hopelessness can lead to issues such as depression, low self-esteem, and suicide. These people may be able to use the bible to help them to cope with hopelessness. For example, Isiah 40-55 is a great explanation on how to restore hope.

Depression affects everyone's life at sometime or another. Depression comes in a wide variety of forms, from mild unhappiness to a chemical imbalance in the mind. There are many different symptoms that reveal a person's problem with depression. If left untreated, depression may continue to develop into a serious illness or even death.

For some teens, striving for perfection has led to harming their own health and wellbeing such as living with depression and suicide. Teenagers today are relying on what they see in ads, T.V., magazines and on the internet for their input on appearances, the way they think not only comes from media sources, but from family and friends.