Closer to Home: The Overlooked Crisis of Suicide - by Christian Anderson

Sometimes we might think of suicide as a distant event, or something that we see statistics about, but never really factor into our daily lives. For others, suicide may be a reality that is far too close to home for comfort, bringing untold grief to countless individuals. Regardless of our individual experiences with suicide, the fact remains that it is an issue that can no longer be ignored. According to the CDC, “Suicide is a leading cause of death in the United States, with 45,979 deaths in 2020” (Center for Disease Control). That’s a heartbreaking number, but it doesn’t even scratch the surface of the tragedy because the CDC also reports that, “In 2020, an estimated 12.2 million American adults seriously thought about suicide, 3.2 million planned a suicide attempt, and 1.2 million attempted suicide” (Center for Disease Control). The amount of people struggling with suicidal thoughts in America alone constitutes a staggering number of individuals.

Moreover, suicide has become a global concern. As one study for the Australian Research Council explained “Suicide is one of the biggest killers globally. Over 700,000 people die of suicide every year, and it is the fourth leading cause of death for people between the ages of 15 and 29 [1]. 77% of suicides occur in low to middle-income countries, making it a global issue to be tackled” (Worsteling and Keating).  Suicide is such a prevalent crisis that if we calculate the number of minutes in a year, we will find that there are more deaths by suicide happening annually than the number of minutes that pass in that same time frame (525,600 minutes in a non-leap year). The numbers clearly illustrate that suicide is a subject that unites individuals around the world and one that requires our collective action globally.

During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of suicides committed by firearm outstripped the number of homicides committed with the same weapon by a factor of thousands (Simon et al.). Not only that, but the same study also reported that this number increased in the following year, “26,320 firearm suicides occurred in the United States during 2021” (Simon et al.). Where is the media coverage on those deaths? Why is this being ignored in the news? As a society, we seem to care an awful lot about mass shootings, with these events often making headlines and our collective mourning constantly trending on social media. Yet we don’t see anywhere near the same coverage on the more numerous suicides that are carried out with the same type of weapon every day. If more suicides occur from firearms than public shootings, shouldn’t we at least give them equal treatment as an issue to address? If suicide is that large of a crisis, why are we not putting forward a concerted effort to address it in the public consciousness?

The unfortunate reality is that our own societal taboos often block attempts for us to create mass awareness. For some reason our society does not know how to handle suicide information. One study at the Queensland University of Technology described the problem this way, “Another barrier to preventing suicide is that, as mentioned above, most at-risk individuals will communicate warning signs to peers but not medical professionals. However, the public is underprepared for this role as most people are not able to identify warning signs, and few know what to do when given knowledge of a potential suicide” (Worsterling and Keating, italics mine).  This is a rather uncomfortable reality, but one that we must address if we are going to make an impact on the issue in our lifetimes. What’s even more concerning is the fact that, despite our knowledge of these issues, suicide is also a crisis that is often mishandled or ignored. According to this same study, the bystander effect is one of the most prominent reasons for inaction. This phenomenon describes a situation where individuals do not act to prevent a suicide because they assume that someone else will (Worsterling and Keating). This kind of accidental negligence could be avoided if the proper steps were taken to prepare and train the public.

So where do we start? How do we overcome problems like the bystander effect, or our general unpreparedness? We can learn to act individually using federally supported resources such as those found at the Suicide Prevention Resource Center website: https://www.sprc.org (Suicide Prevention Resource Center). Some of their methods include researching our local healthcare providers in case of emergency, learning to recognize at-risk individuals, taking the responsibility of action, connecting individuals with professional health-care providers, and following up with them during any treatment they may receive. Overall, if you think someone you know is at-risk for suicide, it is crucial to seek professional intervention immediately as that individual’s life may be on the line (Suicide Prevention Resource Center). However, even in the face of our own individual readiness, the question of suicide’s global impact remains. How do we address suicide on such a large, worldwide scale?

We address it in the same way that we address every other issue facing us globally. We begin by raising public awareness so that we can start looking at the issue the right way. The world must first change its perception of suicide, especially in the public consciousness, before working together to enact change. Asha Worsteling and Byron Keating, researchers at the Queensland University of Technology, address some of the problems associated with the current perception of suicide. They write:

The World Health Organisation [1] acknowledges that one of the most significant obstacles to reducing the rates of suicide is the stigma associated with suicide and mental illness as a whole as it deters people who need help from seeking it. It is possible that such stigma may also deter people from acting when confronted by an at-risk person. As such, improving attitudes towards suicide and increasing awareness of mental illness should be one of the first steps to engaging the community in preventing suicide. (Worsteling and Keating)

The way we perceive suicide, and mental health in general, needs to improve. We don’t treat this issue with the respect and care that it deserves. Right now, the way we view suicide and mental health is often unhelpful. It’s quite clear that the first action we should take in this situation is working together, training a new generation to recognize the importance of helping those who need intervention.

Unfortunately, this change won’t be accomplished overnight. It will take serious effort to create community-wide support and education programs across the world. Still, large-scale community support and awareness programs have been shown to be possible. For instance, in a study of one such community-wide intervention program at the Fort Apache Indian Reservation, suicide rates were illustrated to have declined, even while the national rates simultaneously increased (Allen). Using similar programs that defy national trends and prove effective at minimizing risk, we can begin to take action. We can learn a lot from what has already proven to be effective in the communities around us. We can use these programs as an excellent starting point for the race of raising awareness, saving lives all the way to the finish line.

 Together, we can help the hundreds of thousands of individuals who die by suicide annually. If we rise to the occasion, we can help end this tragedy. The first step to overcoming the problem is acknowledging that one exists. Once we have addressed suicide for the global health crisis that it truly is, we can attempt to connect those who are struggling with the resources they need to overcome their struggle. If we learn to help these individuals as a global team, then suicide won’t be such an insurmountable problem anymore. We must connect with this crisis on an empathic level to understand those who are suffering and apply aid towards their specific needs. By opening that dialogue, we can start to acknowledge their situation, and begin to comprehend the magnitude of their pain. We can help walk alongside them through whatever trial they might face and assist them in forging a stronger, brighter future together.

Works Cited

Allen, James. “Suicide Prevention—We Know What to Do, but Will We Do It?” American Journal of Public Health, vol. 109, no. 5, May 2019, pp. 668–70. EBSCOhost, https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2019.305013.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Suicide Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2022 https://www.cdc.gov/suicide/facts/index.html#:~:text=In%202020%2C%20an%20estimated%2012.2,and%201.2%20million%20attempted%20suicide.&text=Suicide%20affects%20all%20ages.,for%20people%20ages%2010%2D64.

Simon, Thomas R., et al. “Notes from the Field: Increases in Firearm Homicide and Suicide Rates - United States, 2020-2021.” MMWR: Morbidity & Mortality Weekly Report, vol. 71, no. 40, Oct. 2022, pp. 1286–87. EBSCOhost, https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7140a4.

Suicide Prevention Resource Center, SPRC. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2022 https://www.sprc.org

Worsteling, Asha, and Byron W. Keating. “Community and Bystander Interventions for the Prevention of Suicide: Protocol for a Systematic Review.” PLoS ONE, vol. 17, no. 6, June 2022, pp. 1–10. EBSCOhost, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0270375.