When Suicide Becomes an Option By Kingsley Ndimele.
Cases of hopelessness, loss of pleasure in life, depression and anxiousness have led many people to commit suicide. Unexpected loss of a family member or friend, sudden loss of a job, medical diagnoses, a breakup, sexual abuse, social isolation or stigmatization and increasing relative poverty compared to those around a person may increase the risk of suicide. Some people have committed suicide due to issues of debt. In adults, being a burden to others can be overwhelming. Often, I meet young ones especially, who become extremely distressed at the face of challenging circumstances. As a student in the university, there were several reported cases of suicide, some of which were traceable to poor academic performances. For some, public disgrace or humiliation makes it intolerable to go on living; while, for others, the post-traumatic stress of imprisonment can be so devastating.
Worldwide, approximately 22 million people attempt suicide yearly. Suicide accounts for more deaths than wars or murders. It does not discriminate. People of all genders, ages and ethnicities can be at risk. More so, its effect goes beyond the person who acts to take his or her life and can have a lasting effect on families, friends and communities. The ones who care about you or need you most, are mostly affected.
The increasing rate of suicide attempts across the countries is an alert that someone needs help. Traumatic life situations can provoke suicidal thoughts or actions. Every day I meet people who need serious attention. There’s always somebody who needs help as soon as possible. According to World Health Organization, close to 800,000 people die due to suicide every year, which is, one person every 40 seconds. These statistics show you that a lot of people come to see suicide as attractive. Suicide is everywhere; it’s in your neighborhood, at your office. Everywhere! Incredibly, suicide rates are higher in nations with higher standard of living than in less prosperous nations; higher in the US states with a better quality of life; higher in societies that endorse individual freedoms; higher in areas with better weather; and they are higher among college students that have better grades and parents with higher expectations.
Suicide is a senseless act to those who wish to live. But, death as an option to one’s problems makes sense to the suicidal person. The suicidal person has fallen to the other side of the evolutionary fight for survival and have chosen to flee, through death. Suicide is thoroughly misunderstood by the society. Unfortunately, our society is barely sensitive, quick to judge and cast aspersions on suicide victims. Many of us fail to understand the fear, heartbreak and sheer pain that brings an individual to that point. Very few people understand the depth of their pain and what ending life means to them. No matter the situation that brings a person to contemplate death, there’s one thing suicidal people share in common; they cannot love life, right now.
They have experienced a basic and comprehensive breakdown in their ability to make sense out of life and to give it meaning that restores hope. They lack the energy to fight the battle that seems difficult to win – the battle of life. For them, there seem to be no difference between life and death, since they already feel as though they are dead. This is why death is no longer a fearful prospect. They just want some peace. Somehow, it all has to end. Steve Fugate’s campaign for life touches us deeply. The 65-year old Florida man made walking his passion after his son committed suicide in 1999. Since then, Fugate has walked all over the United States, tallying up to 300,000 miles, over the course of 12 years. At each stop, he tells people to love life and reject suicide.
He stated that, “Suicide is the worst possible death on friends and family.” It leaves everything unanswered and there’s no closure. Suicide has an edge that other forms of death don’t.” It doesn’t matter how severe the circumstances seem to us, suicidal people cannot love live or find meaning in it especially in their depressed state. However, it is important for us to know that they do not really want to die; they just want a way out from their suffering. According to Dan Neville, “Suicide isn’t wanting to die. It’s not being able to bear living.” To them, suicide is the only whistle that can bring the battle of life to an end quickly. It seems like the only escape route. It appears like the surest way to reassert a sense of freedom over the limitations that they feel. Suicide for most people, is a problem-solving behavior. However, it is not an impulse. It’s a long process, an infection that develops in your mind. It is day-to-day combat.
According to the World Health Organization, depression is the most common illness worldwide. They estimate that 350 million people are affected by depression globally. Also, research has consistently shown a strong link between suicide and depression. We all get depressed, some of us more than others. The state of negativism, pessimism, nothingness and emptiness can lead to a will to die. This long term depression narrows the perspective and focus of a suicidal person, so that the only way they know to solve the problem is by taking their lives. The darkest depth of depression is the greatest quiet killer, because those with depression are often skilled in hiding their conditions.
“We didn’t know she could do this to herself, she had always looked so happy.” The depth of despair that drives one to thoughts of suicide is beyond labels. Living in depression is like living with a shadow. Every time you try to get rid of it, it clings to your back repeatedly. It makes you feel worse in everything you do. Hopelessness and depression is the main driving force behind suicide, especially when it feels like it’s going to last forever. When life knocks you down, suicide is never an option.
Excerpt from the book titled; RITUALS
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