Suicide: Essay, Research Paper

Suicide- one who kills himself intentionally; the act of doing this suicidal; tending to suicide,

disastrous, ruinous.

Almost everybody at one time or another contemplates suicide. Suicide effects many people of any race, age and gender. Suicide is the third leading cause of death among young people between the ages of fifteen and nineteen years of age. Once every minute someone tries to kill himself with conscience intentions. Sixty or seventy times a day these attempts are successful. There are two different kinds of suicide. They are known as Intention Suicide which is when a person takes a pert in his or her own death through deliberate or impulsive acts. The other is known as Sub intention Suicide this is when the death of the victim play a partial unconscience, role in his own self destruction. They’re many ways of committing suicide. And a number of reason why a person would consider committing suicide.

Depression

Depression is a common reason for someone wanting to commit suicide. Depression can be described as an emotional state of sadness ranging from mild discouragement to a feeling of utter hopelessness. Events that are likely to bring on depression are loss of a loved one, failure in an important relationship, difficulties at work, financial distress, and any event that damages the moral or social surroundings or a person. Depression makes an individual isolate him or herself from their surroundings which causes loneliness. Many times depressions causes people to think they don’t want to live and suicidal act are usually a cry for help. They’re over six million Americans who suffer severe moods of depression chronically and their ability to functioning daily activities are impaired and that can lead them to be suicidal.

Stress

Stress is another factor in suicide. Many people get so stressed out in the work force, school and regular family life. Suicide come into play when they don’t know how to solve their problems. While in the work force a person may have lost his or her job and may not be accustomed to anything else. It could be their only income or they might be too embarrassed that they have on way of supporting themselves and/or their families. nor can they explain their job loss to their families and friends. During adolescence a child or young adult may commit suicide because of events involving school. If the child is in a upper class family their parents may have high sometimes farfetched expectations of them as far as school and success is concerned. Someone in college may want to commit suicide because of stress from bad grades or the inability to pay tuition. The responsibilities of having a family may also be very stressful. If the male is the head of the household and he is unable to support his family financially he may turn to suicide as a way of dealing with his problems. If the female is a homemaker she may have many stresses in her life. Stresses such as taking care of her husband, children and the house. There are many obligations when committing yourself to a family and if you are not mentally prepared for the hard work etc. you will start to feel like nothing you do is good which could cause you to be suicidal. Just the thought of being a failure and not living up to the exceptions of your family it may not be healthy for anyone’s sanity. So stress can be harmful to anyone in any situation when not feeling good about life.

Social Pressure

Social Pressure plays a major role in why people commit suicide for instance they may not be involved in many extracurricular activities. Many young adults may be convinced to commit suicide or feel like that is their only way of not dealing with social problems. While a female is young she tends to be open to social pressures as far as weight and looks. If a female is teased by her hair , the way she dressed, or her psyical appearance she will try to change herself and all of the times it may not work out for the best which could cause her to be suicidal. A female nay be teased about her weight which caused her to commit sub intention suicide like having anorexia or bulimia and they are not aware of the pains that she is putting on her body or her family. The social pressure that plays a role in young males are involvement in gangs. If a guy has a bad family environment he may easily be pressured by gangs. The gangs make him feel like they are his family and he is lured very easily. The result of the young males getting involved with gangs can cause them to commit subintentoned suicide or intentioned suicide. Another social pressure that deals with both males and females are cults. The cults have the young adults believing that death is the way to escape all of the problems that they may be concerned with and that everything will be better. Many things always seems to happen in social pressure and suicide when different factors are involved.

Young or Old

Young and Old are both effected by suicide. Over 1,000 teenagers a day attempt suicide: an estimate of 18 of these adolescents succeed daily. There 57 attempts ever hour, approximately every hour and a half one of young person takes his or her life. Adolescents usually go through a loss of self-esteem and may even go as far as a feeling of loss of the ego. A main cause for adolescents suicide are depression, loss of parents and alienation from the family. Alcohol and Drugs are related to suicide because they tend to reduce anxiety and psychological pain. Alcohol and Drugs allows adolescents to express themselves more easily and the anger and unhappiness comes out. It also creates a false security in dealing with their problems. Many adolescents gives warnings. Studying a depressed pre suicidal elderly person often complains of pains and aches, various disturbances of sleep, loss of appetite and loss of weight. lack of interest and enjoyment of life is a symptom of a pre suicidal elder. Warning signals of suicide are rejection of loved ones, threats of suicide and may have suicidal intentions. The greatest danger of suicide is when there is a situation arising from feelings of helplessness, hopelessness exhaustion and failure which makes them liable prey. Depression in old age is common. Another cause in suicide.may be their environment which could either be positive or negative.

Race

Blacks are less likely to take their lives where white are more likely to take their lives. As population increases there is more competition which means fewer resources and opportunities which can cause low self-esteeme,failure and mental problems. The unploymeny rate among blacks and other negative social problems maybe cause like dysfunctional families, police brutality and racism. The levels of frustration and hostility resulting suicide or homicidal behaviors through self-destruction. Even though black are exposed to different things like poverty , stresses of discrimination as compared to middle class in the white envoirments. Other than social problems that may cause a black to commit suicide their maybe family problems. As compared to a white male who doesn’t have the social problem that a black would have. The suicide rate among whites are caused y psychological factors and the start to believe they are a failure.

Strategies Men use Vs Women

There is no comparison in strategies men use vs. strategies women use. When a male

suicide usually he succeeds if he is really suicidal. compared to a woman who commits suicide

usually can be saved. If a man commits suicide he will do something as drastratic as to shoot himself , jump off off a building or something that he know will take his life. While you the woman who will probably take pills or slash her wrist. More men tend to commit suicide than women suicide than women. During adolescents a woman may tend to be more suicidal but the man still acts on it. If a woman succeeds in committing suicide she was a very disturbed and troubled woman. Many times a woman who is trying to commit suicide she has many family problems and she many issues going on in her life. But usually when a man commits suicide he is usually concerned with his own problems and what others will think of him. When a young woman commits suicide she is usually doing it because of her weight and she starve her self which is much worse than what a young man would do. Men usually don’t care about things like that if a young man commits suicide he is either under the influence of drugs or alcohol or is influenced by his friends.

Prevention

Suicide can be prevented by communication. Giving someone a way to cope with their problems and having them believe that you are really interested in them. By spending time with a suicidal person will take away the aloneness and by them doing different activities will take away the feeling of hopelessness. By letting a person believe that they are loved will help the person that they are needed in the world.

Better understanding of suicide

Better understanding of suicide can’t really be explained there many theories on why people commit suicide. A couple theories of suicide are “Freud said there is too little known about suicide but perhaps the act was really a repudiation of life because of the craving for death. Dr. menninger agrees with Freud that there is the contradiction in life of self preservation and self-destructiveness. Alfred Adler thinks suicide as the inferiority-riddden person who “hurts others by dreaming himself into injuries or by administering them to himself. There are many other theories so therefore you can never really explain why a person would want to commit suicide and what goes on in their mind.

Conclusion

There are many reasons that a person would commit suicide. By people who do not have suicidal tendencies judging those who do, dose not make the problem and better. All people who don’t have the mental illness can do is support and love the people who do. By understanding where the problem occurs and starting working on it early you will be helping the person more than you think. Suicide dose not only effect the victim but it effects the family of the victim and friends. There is no sure way of avoiding depression but there is a sure way of avoiding depression when it involves suicide. By limiting our activities that will cause stress suicide will become a lesser problem. The only thing many people need is to just talk to some or they just need to be loved. Family support play a major role in a depressed, stressed or suicidal person and by just taking time with the person and let them know you care about them and what they are going through means the world to them.