Chapter 9 - Suicide Flashcards
What is Suicide?
-the intentional, direct, and conscious taking of one’s own life
-ideation: thoughts about death, killing oneself
-attempt: self-destructive behaviour with intent to kill oneself
-completion/death by suicide
What is the Prevalence of Suicide?
-9th leading cause of death in Canada
-2nd leading cause of death in young ages 15-34 in Canada
-12% Canadian adults reported suicidal ideation (higher rates among Indigenous peoples - 22-29% and LGBTQ - 24-50%)
-3.1% reported suicide attempt in their lifetime
What are the Comorbidities of Suicide?
->90% of people who commit suicide were likely suffering from a mental illness
-depression predicts suicidal ideation
-bipolar disorder
-substance use disorder
-posttraumatic stress disorder
-borderline personality disorder
How do we study suicide?
Psychological Autopsy:
-systematically examining information after a person’s death in effort to understand and explain behaviour (correlational research)
What are the contributing factors of suicide among youth?
-social media use
-substance abuse
-barriers to identification and treatment
-discrimination
-bullying and cyberbullying
-‘copycat’ suicides (those already prone to suicide)
-decreased prescribing of antidepressants
What are the Suicide rates among College students?
-high rates (20%) of suicidal ideation, 9% attempted suicide
-high stress and transition period
What are the Suicide rates among Military members?
-high rates of suicide among military members and veterans
-contributing factors: military culture may stigmatize emotional symptoms; barriers to mental health care; separated from families, loss of comrades; unrecognized or untreated mental health disorders (PTSD, bipolar, depression)
What are the Suicide rates among the Elderly?
-rates of completed suicide highest among elderly men
-contributing factors: bereavement; physical ailments; social isolation; financial difficulties; prejudice, discrimination, abuse
What are the risk factors for suicide?
-sleep difficulties strong predictor of suicidal behaviour
-effects of alcohol: 70% of attempts involve alcohol; alcohol-induced myopia (focus on negative emotions)
-psychiatric disorders
-prior suicide attempt
-interpersonal conflicts and/or social isolation
What is Psychache?
-intolerable pain + shame, guilt, loneliness, fear
-strongly associated with suicidal ideation
-may develop from maltreatment
What is Joner’s Interpersonal-Psychological Theory of Suicide?
- Perceived burdensomeness = feelings of being a burden to family, friends, or society
- thwarted belongingness = feelings of alienation and a lack of meaningful connections to others
- acquired capacity for suicide = reduction in fear of taking their own life that is sufficient to overcome self-preservation reflexes (repeated SH)
What are the sex and gender differences?
-rates of suicidal behaviours higher for LGBTQ+
-rates of attempting suicide are 3x higher in women (higher rates of depression, childhood abuse, IPV)
-rates of death by suicide are 3x higher in men (avoid seeking help)
What are the differences in lethality of means?
-firearms: 18% of men; 2% of women
-poisoning: 18% of men; 40% of women (less lethal)
What are some protective factors?
-social support
-mental health treatment
-psychological factors (coping, resilience)
-religious affiliation/participation
-restricted access to lethal means of suicide
What are the 3 steps to preventing suicide?
- Assessment (of risk & protective factors; death; intent; plan)
- Determine Risk (probability of acting on suicide ideation)
- Implement appropriate plan (safety planning; hospitalization)
