FREE ESSAY ON SUICIDE: THE FINAL SOLUTION?

SUICIDE: THE FINAL SOLUTION?

Suicide: The Final Solution?
Suicide, the act of intentionally killing oneself, has become an increasingly more common
and serious issue among those who tend to experience problems psychologically dealing
with hardships in life. "Too often, as the daily news tells us, the search for answers to
these challenges is complicated by problems outside teens' control, such as divorce,
family alcoholism, domestic violence or even sexual abuse" (APA Online 1). For all of
these reasons, suicide has become the ninth leading cause of death in the United States,
with 31,204 casualties recorded in 1995. In the past suicide has been guarded as a black
secret that was to be hidden from public knowledge by the families of those who lost a
loved one to it. However, society's view on suicide is currently changing, with much more
attention being paid to the problem and those it is likely to affect. Frequently, suicide
is the result of a failed attempt at regaining control of one's life, to escape
unbearable pain and suffering, or because they see themselves as the family scapegoat.
For whatever reasons it is done, this act of self-destruction is quickly becoming a
common alternative to coping with the hardships faced in everyday life. 
Suicide surfaces at an even more alarming rate among people aged 15-24, with over 13 of
every 100,000 of the population in this age group killing themselves in 1990. It is
estimated by the experts that nearly 5,000 teenagers commit suicide every year, and males
account for 4 times as many successful attempts than females although young women attempt
to kill themselves four times as often as young men do. It is also believed by many
experts that the actual number of suicides is two to three times higher than indicated by
statistics. According to Ovetta Sampson, as teens become older, family relations grow
strained and the children feel isolated. Even worse, due to the tendency of teens to be
more impulsive than adults, many end their suffering with suicide. (Sampson 1).
The reasons for this are incredibly varied, ranging from those that are provoked by
parents and peers to those that are caused by mental and psychological disorders. In a
family environment suffering from abusive or divorced parents, even common problems can
prove to be insuperable. Many teens in a situation similar to this feel that they have
nowhere to turn and will frequently 'medicate' their pain with drugs and alcohol, or
express themselves with acts of violence or self-destruction. The combination of a
dysfunctional family life and the everyday issues that teens are forced to face everyday
can often result in a chronic depression. "The feelings of helplessness and worthlessness
that can accompany it, along with disturbances in sleep or apetite [sic], can fuel a
downward spiral of health and grades, further clouding perspective, making even thought
seem intolerably difficult" (APA Online 1). Although everyone suffers from mood swings in
which he or she occasionally feels sad, those who suffer from depression often experience
these moods for over two weeks at a time. If this condition goes unnoticed or untreated,
the victim could begin to take part in dangerous behavior, all to frequently culminating
with an attempt of suicide, effectively ending all suffering. Bipolar disorder is another
malady that causes individuals to choose the path leading to suicide. In this disease,
the victim suffers from a chemical imbalance in his or her brain that causes him or her
to oscillate between extreme moods of elation and severe depression. An even more
horrifying aspect of teen-suicide is the triggering of 'clusters' within a community. In
this type of occurrence, one suicide has the tendency to bring about multiple others that
have the capability to decimate the school environment or commonwealth in which the
initial act took place. 
The symptoms of a person in danger of committing suicide are just as varied as the
reasons they might possess for doing so. Recognizing the warning signs soon enough can
make it possible to treat and prevent a potential catastrophe from occurring. Perhaps the
most obvious hints towards problems such as these can be found in the phrases that the
victim may use that he or she had not before. These clues can be in the form of lines
including, but not limited to the following: "I'd be better off dead," "I won't be a
problem for you much longer," or "Nothing matters; it's no use." These take root in the
general feeling of hopelessness and rejection that the victims often feel. They are more
vulnerable to having these feelings to a dangerous degree if they have experienced abuse,
humiliation in front of family and friends, or have experienced family problems with
drugs and alcohol. Occurrences such as parental separation or divorce can also be reasons
to carefully watch the actions of the child who may be in danger. Perhaps the most
bizarre aspect of these symptoms is that a depressed or suicidal teenager may not have
experienced any of these. 
The actions that a person goes through are also a major indication of potential problems
he or she may be experiencing. A noticeably great increase in the consumption of large
quantities of drugs and alcohol is a serious warning sign. Teenagers who are planning to
commit suicide might 'clean house' by giving away favorite possessions and throwing
things away. They may also become suddenly cheerful right after a period of depression
due to the belief that they have 'found the solution' by deciding to end their lives.
People who are experiencing these behaviors are at potentially high risk of taking
suicidal actions to help themselves deal with the pain they are suffering. 
A great percentage of suicides reportedly take place after the victim has experienced a
humiliating or embarrassing incident that cause a great deal of turmoil in his or her
life. This incident can greatly affect the person's outlook on life altogether. Going
through a time of great degradation greatly reduces the self-esteem, occasionally to the
point of a deep depression. This depression can then regress to the chronic and dangerous
melancholy that leads to suicidal tendencies. These upsetting incidents are usually
classified into two major categories: personal and professional. In both classifications,
the incident can be almost anything, depending upon the personality of the person. 
Personally, these can include, but are not limited to the following: breaking up with a
boyfriend or girlfriend, divorce of the victim or the victim's parents, a car accident or
moving violation, or an incident involving friends. These are sometimes the most
difficult to deal with because of the manner in which the affected feels others view him
or her. It can initiate a feeling of paranoia and a constant uncomfortable disposition
around people in general. It is this feeling of insecurity that can eventually induce
suicidal tendencies. 
The professional problems can be just as traumatic. These can be in both the work place
for teenagers and college-age people and in the workplace for adults. Students can
experience failure on a test or exam, the inability to perform to class standards on a
project, disappointment in the fidelity of a teacher when being trusted with confidential
information, or the incapacity to fully grasp a concept in a class. For adults on the
jobsite, these can take the form of the loss of a promotion to a co-worker, a deduction
in pay, a lay-off or termination, accusations of improper activities towards other
employees, ridicule from other employees, or frequent reprimands by the employer. 
The psychological aspects of suicidal and depressed individuals have just recently been
studied in depth after being dismissed for years as normal teenage behavior. This has
been so recent in fact, that until 20 years ago, the psychiatrists would have protested
that children and teens did not have the mental capacity or maturity to suffer from such
'adult' afflictions as depression or bipolar disorder. Even more alarming is the erratic
mood swings and strange behavior patterns that these teens exhibited were dismissed as
normal teenage behavior. For example, teens completely isolating themselves from peers
and relatives and prime athletes losing all interests in the sports at which they
excelled was discharged as merely a phase that teens go through. "Experts say myths about
teen behavior and ignorance about teen mental health have combined to blind society to
teen mental illness. Parents, convinced that moodiness, anti-social behavior and thoughts
of suicide are par for the course for teen-agers, may overlook signs of serious mental
illness. The delay could be deadly" (Sampson 1). 
Experts agree that adolescence is a time of risk-taking in which teens crave privacy, and
may indulge in not-so-smart behavior. However, there is a limit. Normal adolescents do
not feel the need to end their lives through suicide, nor do they engage in frequent
consumption of drugs and alcohol. They also do not have problems with the law, nor do
they suffer from significant behavioral problems at school. Experts further agree that
frequently the degradation of a minor disorder into a chronic depression or bipolar
disorder and eventually suicide is largely the fault of the parents. Parents often do not
want to see mental illness in their children, and thus they ignore the truly erratic and
dangerous behavior. 
Every day, psychiatric research is discovering more clues to the causes of depression and
suicide. Studies have found that some of these causes may be more biological rather than
physical or mental. Experts have determined that a percentage of people who suffer from
clinical depression have altered levels of certain chemicals within the brain, which
effectively causes the disposition of the individual to stray from that of people with
normal levels of the substance. Other researchers have detected a reduced amount of
serotonin, a crucial brain chemical, in aggressive and impulsive individuals who make
violent suicide attempts. Another link to the suicidal tendencies of young people is
family history. Here, the association might be the tendency of a juvenile to identify
with the person closest to him or her, thus being more likely to repeat this individual's
actions. Yet another study suggests there may be a genetic link between suicides within
the same family. Biological relatives of a suicidal person are six times more likely to
attempt or succeed in suicide than are adoptive relatives of that person. 
Individuals who suffer from suicidal tendencies or thoughts inherit these traits from
difficulties in three primary areas of life: childhood issues including abuse and
neglect, humiliating or embarrassing incidents both at work or school and in personal
life, and from psychological disorders such as chronic depression and bipolar disorder.
It is because of these that suicide has become such a major problem for so many
individuals in today's society. "Suicide is the ninth leading cause of death in the US,
with 31204 deaths recorded in 1995. This approximates to around one death every seventeen
minutes. There are more suicides than homicides each year in the United States" (suicide
@ rochford.org). 
Individuals in danger of possibly committing suicide usually exhibit very peculiar
symptoms that can tip off the inherent problems. Withdrawal or avoidance of social
activities, loss of interest in activity or hobbies that were at one time enjoyed, sudden
disposal or dispersion of favorite personal belongings, or statements pertaining to no
longer having to worry about problems are only a few of the many characteristics that can
be shown by a potentially suicidal person. Helping a person in this situation can be very
difficult to do, especially because they seldom wish to speak to others about the trouble
they are going through. However, reassuring the individual that he or she has someone
they can talk to for help can provide a great deal of difference in their actions. A
person who is willing to listen can be anyone including friends, parents, teachers,
physicians, and guidance counselors. For those suffering from a clinical depression or a
chemical imbalance, psychotherapy or the proper medication can help most victims of this
type of condition with a 90% success rate. With these options available, suicide is a
senseless tragedy that can be avoided with the proper help. 
Bibliography
Works Cited
APA Online Public Information-Teen Suicide. 
http://www.psych.org/public_info/TEENAG~l.htm
Sampson, Ovetta. "Teen Depression: Adolescent Rebellion Helps Mask Mental Disorders." The
Gazette 13 October 2000
Suicide @ Rochford.org.
http://www.rochford.org/suicide/resource/stats/us/