Paper Example on Suicide: A Global Tragedy With Individual Implications

Introduction

Suicide carries a moral and social meaning. At the population and individual level, suicide has been seen to correlate to socio-economic, cultural, and political forces. I have chosen this topic because understanding suicide is critical in preventing individual contextual while understanding how it relates to individual contextual experiences. Every year, over one million people die of suicide globally. In the United States alone, 42,000 people die from suicide (McCance-Katz, 2019). Suicide is the tenth overall cause of death and the second leading cause of death among young people who are under the age of 24. Tragically, suicide is caused by untreated mental illness and sometimes the use of substances. Despite the fact these causes are preventable, suicide is still the 10th leading cause of deaths. This piece will discuss what causes suicide and the impact suicide has on society.

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Research Questions

• What are the causes of Suicide?
• What are the impacts of suicide in society?
• How can suicide rates be reduced?

Background

There are different methods of committing suicide, but the use of a gun is the most common. Overdosing on drugs to commit suicide is also much more common than it has been realized. Suicide numbers are even higher when drug overdose is put into consideration. Most of the overdosed drugs are opioid pills, and other deaths involve multiple drugs. Deaths occurring from drug overdose are usually hard to determine whether they are suicide or just a drug overdose. Most drug overdose deaths occur when people with chronic pain are no longer responding to opioid drugs. Sometimes also the clinicians are no longer willing to prescribe the opioids and leave patients to take the medicines at their peril. Such people suffer what is called silent suicides because their deaths are unintentional.

Many people question why the figures of people committing suicide are so staggering. A study published from analysis of midlife in the United States shows that Americans at the lower distribution in socioeconomic status have low life satisfaction and have a lot of negative views about life. The people are not healthy psychologically and also have negative views on social well-being. Such people are more likely to commit suicide. The findings depict an environment that promotes the development of depression and anxiety and, sometimes, addiction. People with poor mental health will always be vulnerable to suicide. This is partly because they have poor access to healthcare and even with such access, they don't respond positively to the healthcare given. As a consequence, this can change to hopelessness. The people who are most vulnerable to addiction to substance abuse can be detected if screening is done regularly.

Government resources alone may not suffice in addressing the root cause of suicide. The current changes in society make people go through deAmericansnd isolation. Americans from an early age have immersed themselves in the use of social media. This has led to a disconnect with the social world, hence a lack of family and community support. The family and community have been replaced by a social media world where people are exposed to a lot of useful information and wrong information equally, which does not have any sieving. With the younger generation being the most affected, social media can be a source of a lot of adverse interactions. The anonymity present in the social media world has given many people a platform to exchange all sorts of information without regard to the consequences or harm such information could case on others (McCance-Katz, 2019).

The social media platforms can be seen as impeding the learning of social norms because of the reduced interactions. The platforms expose people to outright harm, and some victims of suicide have been subject to cyberbullying. Emerging research has shown that cellphone addiction is on the rise, with students spending up to 9 hours on the phone daily. This addiction has dire consequences on the youth, including failure in their academics and even make them incapable of attaining their career goals. It is logical to conclude that such failures can lead to substance abuse and mental illness.

Research Methodology

This research was a desktop study, focusing on books and peer-reviewed articles. The research was done by comparing different articles and their findings. The other research tool that I used was using questionnaires and interviewing at least 50 people. I interviewed one professor because his insight was educative. The questionnaire questions were as follows.

• What is your name?
• What is your age?
• Do you feel the world would be a better place without you in it?
• Have you started isolating yourself from others in the school?
• Have you ever thought of harming yourself?
• Do you have any history of substance abuse?
• Do you experience anger from time to time?
• Do you have a history of feeling depressed?
• Have you ever wished you could go to sleep and never wake up?

Results

1 out of 50 people have thought about or attempted to commit suicide in their lives. At least 25 people know about someone who has committed suicide. Many people are unhappy generally, but at least two out of every ten people have thought about committing suicide at some point. Many people feel depressed, and at that moment is when most people are vulnerable to suicide. Depression is caused by a lack of mental wellness and is caused by other socio-economic factors. Most

Limitations of the research

The sample size used in this research was small; this was limited by the resources. Hence the need to research using a larger sample size. There is limited available data on the impact of suicide, hence the need for further professional research on the impacts of suicide. Many people did not want to take the interview on suicide or felt it was unnecessary; hence, access was a problem. The strength of the research was that the questions asked were conclusive to show whether a person is likely to commit suicide and whether they have attempted suicide before. The research questions were well structured.

Discussion

The results further show how socio-economic factors contribute to suicide. Lack of satisfaction and poor mental health are the leading causes of suicide. Those who knew someone who has committed suicide depicted signs of stigma surrounding suicide. Most of the respondents did not know how to deal with those who are left after a beloved one has committed suicide (McCance-Katz, 2019).

As alarming as the figures are, they are not a true reflection of the impact suicide has on the community. When a person dies of suicide, their families and the communities around them are changed forever. Conventionally, people think only close family members are affected by such suicides. Those falling outside the kin are forgotten as grievers in the aftermath of suicide. Studies show that a large quantum of people are exposed to suicide, as they know at least one person who has committed suicide. Those exposed to suicide experience a minor impact on their lives, while others may have long or short term bereavement, making them feel devastated, affecting their lives in one way or another.

The impact of one being exposed to suicide deaths at various continuums is still not known with certainty. Indeed, suicide is stigmatized death, and the survivors struggle with the aftermath of the suicide. Suicide stigma could mean that traditional support is withdrawn, mostly because people don't know how to respond and sometimes are uncomfortable. Survivors of the loss also suffer isolation for fear of being judged. Many people have suffered loss through suicide but do not talk about it due to stigma (Cerel & Sanford, 2016). Many people consider talking about suicide a taboo talk because of the failure to fully understand suicide. Due to the nature of suicide deaths, those who are a bereaved risk of becoming depressed, anxiety, getting post-traumatic stress, and eventually even committing suicide.

Together with its ripple effects, suicide comes as a shock to many people. Such deaths are unexpected, and those who are left behind never expected or even prepared like certain illnesses, such as terminal illness (Goldsmith et al., 2012). Those left behind also deal with the feeling of guilt and helplessness, feeling that they might be the reason their loved one committed death. They also feel that they probably did not do enough to support their beloved ones, leading to their suicide.

Suicide affects people from all walks of life, including middle-aged people, blacks, and whites, cutting across all demographics. It is estimated that at least 1.1 million people attempt death annually. For each suicide attempted, there at least 25 attempts. Also, for every attempt, there is a risk of a future attempt. Those who attempt suicide still live amongst us. Exposure of the survivors is critical in helping them avoid future attempts (Cerel & Sanford, 2016).

The government cannot stop such activities or consequences of the choices. The society at significant needs to address these issues at different levels, which can be families, schools, and communities. The social fabric needs to be repaired, and in the process, social media will also be used. Further research needs to be conducted to develop acceptable, new approaches in social media interactions and messaging.

Conclusion

Across cultures, family support, and cohesion act as a buffer against suicide. Social support and having religious affiliations also cushion people against suicide. Addressing suicide should be done by a partnership between government, communities, teachers, and parents. The government provides resources to help in addressing these issues, but everyone has an important role to play. When all stakeholders are involved, great strides can be made in reducing the suicide rates in society.

References

Castles, F. G., Curtin, J. C., & Vowles, J. (2006). Public policy in Australia and New Zealand: The new global context. Australian Journal of Political Science, 41(2), 131-143.

Cerel, J., & Sanford, R., (2016) The impact of suicide: World Suicide Prevention Day and why suicide awareness matters about Oxford University Press.

Goldney, R. D. (2013). Suicide prevention. Oxford University Press. Retrieved from: https://books.google.co.ke/books?id=1bF6oAAfjYAC&pg=PT85&dq=Impact+of+suicide&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiX3pSQ95LmAhWSlhQKHcRFCs4Q6AEIZDAI#v=onepage&q=Impact%20of%20suicide&f=false

Goldsmith, S. K., Pellmar, T. C., Kleinman, A. M., & Bunney, W. E. (2012). Reducing suicide: A national imperative. National Academies Press. Retrieved from: https://books.google.co.ke/books?id=9xGdAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT209&dq=Impact+of+suicide&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiX3pSQ95LmAhWSlhQKHcRFCs4Q6AEIWjAH#v=onepage&q=Impact%20of%20suicide&f=false

McCance-Katz, E. F. (2019) Suicide-And A Reflection On Our Changing American Society.