The Cause Of Suicide In The United States

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) has published a fact sheet of statistics on suicide in the United States. In 2007, it is reported that suicide was the tenth leading cause of death. Furthermore, for every suicide committed, eleven were attempted. A total of 34,598 deaths occurred from suicide with an overall rate of 11.3 suicide deaths per 100,000 people. (NIMH, 2010). Risk factors were also noted on this report and listed “depression and other mental disorders, or a substance abuse disorder (often in combination with other mental disorders). More than ninety percent of people who die by suicide have these risk factors (NIMH, 2010).”

In 2014, suicide was the tenth leading cause of death overall in the United States. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH, 2015), there were twice as many suicides than there were homicides. Suicidal ideation (SI), defined as an individual thinking about, considering, or planning their suicide, is established before the act of committing suicide. Research suggests that adverse childhood experiences (CDC, 2015) will put an individual at risk for developing a mental illness that could result in SI and suicide attempt (SA). It is important for the psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) to recognize the signs of SI and SA while assessing their client.

Attempting suicide is an epidemic in the United States; especially when 41% of transgender individuals have attempted suicide compared 1.6% of the general population (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation). Due to this, the question of whether or not transgender youth have a harder, more straining adolescence than their cisgender counterparts rises. Although adolescence can be hard on everyone, experiences such as a school environment, puberty, laws that guarantee protection, family and social acceptance of transgender youth are harder than those of their cisgender counterparts (harder does not necessarily mean correlate with strenuous, the use of harder is aiming more towards different, costly, and possibly more confusing). The revolution for transgender lives is just beginning, change is happening. But in order for change to occur, adequate information on the material needs to be discussed and terminology must be defined and questions must be answered. Questions such as: what do the terms transgender and cisgender actually mean? Why is it important to know the difference between the two terms? What is the difference between transsexual and transgender?

The suicide levels in America have now reached crisis levels. If suicide were a disease, it would be discussed on social media, the news and around the water cooler. People would be in a panic wondering how to counteract the “disease” and escape the clutches of it within their own personal lives. Doctors would appear on talk shows and the news educating the public on what they can do to prevent “suicide” from affecting their own lives. It would be labeled the epidemic taking out even the strongest among us in our modern generation. However, suicide isn’t a disease per say. It can be a symptom of a disease, such as depression. However, it in and of itself is only the embodiment and end-result of the despair and hopelessness that many people in America live with on a daily basis. Perhaps, if it was treated like a contagious, preventable disease, and not something to be ashamed of, less Americans would be meeting their end via suicide and instead seek the help they need to get better.

Every 40 seconds someone in the world DIES by suicide, every 41 seconds someone is left to make SENSE of it. Suicide is when someone intentionally end his or her own life for varying reasons which they find them reasonable and worthy enough to give up their lives. Suicide is event that is hard to cope with especially then the one who dies is young the devastation is even more profound. Suicide recently settled in the 3rd place of the top leading cause of death among 15 to 24 year olds, barely surpassed by homicide and accidents (http://www.kidshealth.org). Many life events that happens on daily basis could lead to thoughts as confusion, self-doubt, bullying, depression, financial issues or pressure to succeed. When It comes to pressure to succeed in some countries like Egypt parents are adamant about the idea that their children must achieve educational ranks and get enrolled in what they see high prestigious majors as medicine and engineering. Suicide would be prevented more psychologically than physically as the tools used for ending one’s life or self-harming usually is accessible to all the people, it could be a firearm, pills or jumping of heights they are all easy to reach methods or tools. However, parents rarely give attention or realise the prevalence of suicide.

Suicide has historically been and continues to be a significant issue in the United States, for civilians as well as active duty military service members and veterans. While statistics surrounding suicide appear to be just numbers on a page, I personally implore the reader of the following paper to never lose sight of the fact that those numbers represent real people. Each one of those people, be they civilian or military, represent a loss of a father or a mother, a brother or a sister, a son or a daughter, a best friend, a comrade, …a person whose life, and that life’s potential, is now forever lost. The following statistics on suicide rates in the United States do not differentiate if the individual was a civilian, an active duty

Every suicide effects more than the individual’s life, in truth it impacts families, communities and economic well-being of our nation. According, Piscopo, Lipari, Cooney, and Glasheen, (2016) “Suicide is an important public health problem in the United States and a tragedy for all involved—families, friends, neighbors, colleagues, and communities. In 2014, suicide was the 10th leading cause of death in the United States overall.1 Among people aged 10 to 34, suicide was the second highest cause of death, and for those aged 35 to 54, it was the fourth highest cause of death” (p. 2).

Did you know that in the U.S., the suicide rates are their highest during the springtime? In addition to, nearly 30,000 Americans commit suicide every year. In my essay, I will explain the suicide effects/risks and the warning signs and ways of coping with losing a loved one. Typically when someone is contemplating suicide, they come from a rough past and have been through quite a bit. It is also very difficult for someone to have a loved one go through with suicide.

Suicides are one of the most prevalent deaths that occur across the world. Suicidal cases have been examined by philosophers, scholars and researchers since decades (Bertolote, 2000). Majority of the suicidal cases reflect stress, fear of losing reputation and disbelief and anger as reasons. As hard it is to counsel the patients with suicidal tendencies, it is equally hard to prevent them (Bertolote, 2000). It is recorded that suicides are the tenth major causes for death in United States and it increased to 12% from the period 2000-2009 (Schmitz, et al., 2012). The biggest irony in the case of suicides is the people who save our lives i.e. doctors are more prone to suicides. Amongst the doctors who commit suicides, Dentists

Each year in the United States approximately 30,000 or 12.93 per 100,00 (prevalence) persons die each year as a result of suicide with an additional 500,000 making a failed attempt. However, in 2013 the official number of reported deaths by suicide totaled 41,149 or 1.6 percent of all reported deaths in the U.S, thereby making suicide the 10th leading cause of death (American Association of Suicidology, 2015). When comparing global suicide statistics, the U.S. ranks 47th amongst the 116 countries included in the study, and although other countries fair far worse, it is important to note, suicide is preventable (World Health Rankings, 2014). These startling statistics are reversible if, we as a society act to dismantle the stigma associated with both emotional and mental disorders given they are often the precursor of suicidal ideation.

The act of killing yourself, most often as a result of depression or other mental illness (Fox, 2013). In the United States, more than two percents of deaths are due to suicide. The highest rate is for men over the age of sixty nine, but is increasing everyday in young people of the ages fifteen to twenty four. One million people commit suicide worldwide annually, and ten million to twenty million people attempt suicide annually. There are roughly about thirty thousand people that kill themselves every year just in the United States. The actual number could be higher because some deaths are recorded as an accident, single car accident, or something that isn’t even recognized as a suicide. In men it is the eighth leading cause of death and in women it is the sixteenth leading cause of death. The higher frequency of completed suicides in males versus females is consistent across the life span. Teenage at the ages of fifteen to nineteen years old will commit suicide five as often as females their age. Men at the ages of twenty to twenty four years of age will commit suicide ten times more often as women. The rate for gay and lesbian individuals is much higher at them attempting suicide.

Depression carries a high risk of suicide. Over 90% of people who die by suicide have clinical depression or another diagnosable mental disorder. Many times, people who die by suicide have an alcohol or substance abuse problem. Often they have that problem in combination with other mental disorders.

The Worlds Health Organisation (WHO) defines suicide as the act of deliberately killing oneself (World Health Organisation, 2015). WHO goes on to suggest that the risk factors for suicide consist of mental disorders (such as depression, personality disorder, and schizophrenia,

Suicides are a result of depression or some kind of mental illness. Most people who complete suicide don’t necessarily want to die, but they feel as if giving up there life is the only solution to cure their pain. Suicide in the United States is the 10th leading cause of death; homicide ranks 16th, according to Center for Disease Control (CDC). Some recent rates, confirmed by CDC, in 2013 there were approximately 41,149 deaths caused by people completing suicide. Depression is one of the main causes that suicides happen. Without professional help, depression can really take over your mind and exceed to a high risk or endangerment and self-harm. Depression is a mood disorder, which causes a person’s feelings, behavior and moods to change making them sad or sick. Depression has affected on an average of 20-25% Americans from ages 18+ in a given year. (CDC)

Suicide as any other life threatening illness is beyond our knowledge to understand what exactly causes someone to kill themselves or even attempt too. Suicide is a serious health problem that takes an enormous effect on family, friends, communities, as well as active military personnel and veterans. Suicide is only a permanent solution to a temporary problem. Suicide risk factors are features or conditions that can increase the chances that a person might think of taking their life. The higher the risk factors the higher the risk that they will attempt suicide. For example some of the health factors can be mental health conditions, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders, and substance abuse disorders are a few examples of