Articles & Studies
Europe and Suicide
Try and grasp this statistic: the number of people who commit suicide in the EU is larger than the number of people who die in road collisions. And so you can put it in perspective: 50,000 people die from road collisions in the EU.
This has caused the EU to take notice. On June 13th, the European pact for mental health and wellbeing was signed. Several initiatives comprise their plan some of which include: raising public awareness, support for people who have attempted suicide, identifying mental health problems in school-aged children, and making accommodations that will allow older people to work during their later years.
Ironically, along with the EU’s attempt to reduce their rate of suicides, Dutch researchers and doctors have published a suicide guide, somewhat of a “how-to” for those considering suicide. This book isn’t a quick and dirty guide; the path they discuss takes months. And the guide isn’t for those who face situations that can be helped, such as those with mental illnesses. Their guide is intended more for the elderly and those who have “a serious physical disease and a longstanding wish to die.” The book is also for doctors who the authors say need help understanding how to handle cases where their patients choose to end their lives.
So suicide is a big deal in the EU. But really suicide is a big deal everywhere isn’t it? For the families who are left behind, for the friends? I certainly understand how mental illnesses can be so debilitating that the sufferers believe suicide may be the only way to end the suffering. And while I ethically oppose ending your own life, I can step outside of that belief long enough to feel empathy for those who are sick, dying, or in pain. I know that at times suicide feels like the only path that one can control in an otherwise very uncontrollable and, at times, excruciating world.
But for the record, let me say that the EU has something going for them. They have acknowledged that the suicide rates are a serious problem. In fact, a suicide rate of 1 person a year is a problem because suicides don’t just mean death for the victims. The survivors, along with coping with the heavy loss, must also deal with a lifetime of what-could-have-been’s and should-have’s; many dreams and hopes die with the victim.
Does it matter if a suicide is carefully planned and carried out over a course of time like the guide details?
I honestly don’t know. But I do know that a suicide stays with the people who remain long after the event; it’s hard to censor all the missed opportunities that play around in your head.
References
Sheldon, T. (2008). Dutch doctors publish guide to “careful suicide”. BMJ, 336(7658), 1394-1395. DOI: 10.1136/bmj.a362
Watson, R. (2008). EU launches plan to tackle mental illness and reduce number of suicides. BMJ, 336(7658), 1394-1394. DOI: 10.1136/bmj.a381
2 Comments/Trackbacks
Norman Fried
Kelly
I posted my reply to your article on the Britannica Blog Site. thanks for your input. Would like to hear your thoughts.
Leave a Reply
Saturday, March 20, 2010
- Religion - A "Natural" Phenomenon?
- Psychotropics and Youth, Part 1 - The Five Myths
- How Culture Shapes Our Mind and Brain
- Sex, Violence and The Male Warrior Hypothesis
- The Secret to Good Health – Listen to the Data
- If Herbal Medicine is Medicine, Shouldn't it be Treated as Such?
- Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Neuroscience Conferences for 2010
- Too Much Information?
- "I Feel Your Pain" - The Neural Basis of Empathy
- Income Inequality and Health Outcomes
- The Evolution of Depression
- Journal Retracts Autism Research
- Speaking in Tongues - A Neural Snapshot
- Post-Partum Psychosis - Rare but Real
- Is Your Doctor Happy or Burnt-Out?
- Ginkgo Biloba Ineffective... Again
- Worried Well on the Web
- Psychotropics and Youth, Part 2 - The Solutions
- Why Some Human Brains Become Leaders, While Others Followers?
- Postoperative Cognitive Dysfunction
- Let the Matches Begin!
- My Nephew and his Brain, Part 4 – Their Life Today
- My Nephew and his Brain, Part 3 – Try to Work Out their Troubles
- My Nephew and his Brain, Part 2 – Revealed to be Complicated
- My Nephew and his Brain, Part 1 – Introduction
- Deep Brain Stimulation – A New Frontier in Psychiatry
- Psychotropics and Youth, Part 3 – Equip Teachers with Prescription Pads?
- Why Some Human Brains Become Leaders, While Others Followers?
- Brain Blogger Finalist for Two 2010 Research Blogging Awards in Neuroscience and Psychology
- Tall Tales of Diabetic Amputations
- Psychotropics and Youth, Part 2 – The Solutions
- Brain Blogging, Forty-Ninth Edition
- How Your Brain Groups Words
- The Child Brain and the Playing Teacher
- You Have a Right to Choose if we Agree
- Measuring Quality in Primary Care
- Matchmaker, Matchmaker Make Me A Match – The NRMP Main Residency Match
- Psychotropics and Youth, Part 1 – The Five Myths
- When It Comes to Aging, Size Matters
- “I Feel Your Pain” – The Neural Basis of Empathy
- yea ur right lol lughter the best medicine i cnt do without it in a day!!!!!!!!!...
- Very touching story. My heart goes out to your family. Seizures are tough. And ...
- Thank you for sharing your nephew's story. So hard on those who love him, but I...
- Congratulations to all who've matched! Although the results of NRMP Main Residen...
- It's been almost 25 years since my son suffered a TBI in an accident. He was onl...
- I tend to agree with the teachers.But a teacher can only keep a record about the...
- Very interesting article, the 5th paragraph gets a little biased...but I still e...
- Dear Dan,There is certainly much clinical interest in this field. ClinicalTr...
- I recently commented on a sciencedaily.com article reporting success with TRD an...
- I have family members who are teachers. After sharing this article with them, th...
- It is great that people are challenging the use of this medication. As, a societ...
- I agree with the stand of the teachers and their children's that more than half ...
- I think that there’s also a social aspect to it. If you grow up in an area where...
- I have had epilepsy since I was 9 and am now 42. I have tried about every med. o...
- In this text is a serious error. Brain areas are found that contain religious ex...
- It's amazing how the brain works....
- Organ transplant for unavoidable patients have been around for quite some time a...
- Diet plays a major role in having diabetes. In today's world, people are finding...
- Interesting... I think that there's also a social aspect to it. If you grow up i...
- I think the article is actually describing a normal human being. Leadership tra...
Sponsored Links
Brain Fitness DVD, Home Care, Alcohol Rehab, Emergency Lighting, Online Criminal Justice Degrees, Tattoo, Diet and Health Supplements, Best vitamins supplements, Health Insurance, Electronic Accessories , Retractable Banner Stands , Biotherapeutic Product Information , Breast Cancer Stages , Buy Potaba Online , Cystic Fibrosis Lungs , Pancreatic Cancer Treatment , Dallas health insurance agency , Arthritis Treatment , Long Term Disability Insurance , Lung Cancer Treatment , auto accident attorneys Allen , Who Gets Lyme Disease? , Edgepark Medical , Mattress , Hydroxycut, Astrology compatibility.
Neuroscience & Neurology
March 06, 2010 | 6 Comments | By Simi Agarwal, DDS
Why Some Human Brains Become Leaders, While Others Followers?
More In Neuroscience & Neurology
- How Your Brain Groups Words
- The Child Brain and the Playing Teacher
- “I Feel Your Pain” – The Neural Basis of Empathy
- Speaking in Tongues – A Neural Snapshot
- Neuro Case 1 – Using Transcranial Doppler for Basilar Artery Occlusion
Neuroscience & Neurology
Opinion
February 01, 2010 | 1 Comment | By Jennifer Gibson, PharmD
Crossing the Line from Physician to Journalist
More In Opinion
- Sex, Violence and The Male Warrior Hypothesis
- Bruxism and the Brain
- Religion – A “Natural” Phenomenon?
- Natural Good, Chemical Bad – Right?
- Time for a Change – Gender Reassignment
Opinion
Psychiatry & Psychology
March 12, 2010 | 3 Comments | By Shaheen E Lakhan, MS, MEd, PhD, MD
Deep Brain Stimulation – A New Frontier in Psychiatry
More In Psychiatry & Psychology
- Psychotropics and Youth, Part 2 – The Solutions
- Psychotropics and Youth, Part 1 – The Five Myths
- Journal Retracts Autism Research
- White Bears – The Paradox of Mental Suppression
- Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice?


I’m guessing this is mostly Northern Europe — Germany, Holland, Scandanavia, etc. I remember reading a long time ago that one of those countries (Finland I think) had the world’s highest suicide rate.
Religious beliefs and social taboos are less prevalent in those countries. Also (this is a huge generalization), most people in those countries are very orderly and even-tempered. I think there’s supposed to be an inverse relationship; that the less volatile and more polite a society is, the more likely they are to direct anger and aggression inward instead of outward. I read that in a James Michener novel, for whatever that’s worth.
I’m glad the EU is acknowledging this problem and trying to get a handle on it.