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Jonathan Rodriguez

Professor Massey

ENC 1101

12-10-17

Bringing Awareness To Suicide

Suicide, occurs when someone takes their own life because its the only way to solve the

solution. David L. Conroy stated that suicide is not chosen; it happens when pain exceeds

resources for coping with pain. Suicide is a step into the wrong direction for most. This action

affects not just the person who took their life but, the families and friends. Lives change for

everyone that go through this cause of death. Suicide that cannot be overlooked any more. It is

the leading cause of death in todays youth. As someone who has seen and experienced a loved

one go and do such action I want to show that this can be prevented. In this paper, I will advocate

and bring an awareness and understanding toward the situation, and offer solutions to the issue

but, to do this we must first understand the causes of suicide.

Many studies have been conducted showing some causes of suicide. Its also stated that

people contact their doctors for help prior to the event of them committing suicide. Doherty

stated in her part of an article that Between 57 percent and 90 percent of individuals who die by

suicide consulted their general practitioner in the year prior to death, with as many as 45 percent

seeing A physician in the prior month but, more than half obtained health services in the four

weeks prior to the Suicide (Doherty,and Devylder. pp. 205). This study alone goes to show that

the events leading to suicide can be prevented. Furthermore, more studies showed that people

who committed such action was due to depression. Depression has come to be a well-known

cause of suicide in the past years. Doherty stated in her article that In studies of general practice
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settings, only 36 percent of patients presenting with symptoms of major depression, were asked

about suicide ideation. Meaning that not even half of people were really asked (206). Thus,

suggesting the other half would have been prevented if they would have taken the time to sit and

ask. However, Devylder also went to state in the same article a good way to give one of many

solutions to the issue. He states, My suggestion given was that it would be best if a social

worker in a primary care setting can increase awareness of underlying issues, thus leading to

further effective interventions (207).

In continuation, depression is not the only thing that ties with suicide, but also the areas

people live can take an affect. In recent years rural areas have been linked with lack of mental

health. A study published Monday in JAMA Pediatrics analyzed suicides among people aged

10 to 24 between 1996 and 2010, and found that rates were nearly doubled in rural areas,

compared to urban areas (Beck). Some reasons for this are that in rural areas people are more

exposed to guns, doctors are seen much less than in urban areas, and service centers in small

amount compared to urban areas as well. It also doesnt help that many of the people that have

grown up in the rural areas have been exposed to weapons at a young age. Thus, the population

in these areas have been declining at a fast rate. However, many counties started to notice the

issue at hand as well. The rural area counties have started a program is called Better Todays. It

was developed to educate adult gatekeepers in rural communities on how to identify and respond

to adolescents at risk for suicide. Kirkwood, Ann D., and Weller went on to be a part of the

program and conduct test on those who also took place in the program. They both stated that

trainings and customized program content may be an effective way to improve mental health

literacy in rural communities. Rural areas now have a better way to prevent the amount of
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suicides they have had from the years past. Even though, the rural area has found a solution

suicide also has other aspects that we see continue till this day.

Bullying is an issue that continues to affect people no matter the age. People can be

bullied for many reasons such as Sexual Orientation, Gender, and Race/Ethnicity. Many studies

have gone to be conducted on the matter and how it would affect someones life. When it comes

to name calling, beating on each other, and talking someone down on social media it has a toll on

someones life. The bullying also is said to tie in with the concept of depression. In the study

conducted by Mueller stated that being bullied is associated with higher odds of suicide

ideation. It also goes on to say that Race really wasnt the main reason for the bullying neither

gender but, mostly was because of the sexual orientation (Mueller pp.982). Which would make

sense seeing as many of the suicides that have been reported have been caused by bullying and

many of the victims were of different sexual orientation. The study went on to show when many

adolescents were asked what causes their suicide ideation? Many went on to say that them

being judged by their sexual orientation played a big part of them wanting to commit suicide.

Another study by Britain found that at least half of suicides among young people are related to

bullying, and ABC News also stated that nearly 30 percent of students are either bullies or

victims of bullying, and 160,000 kids stay home from school every day because of fear of

bullying. Even though, that many programs have been made to stop bullying still to this day it

continues. This is an issue that ties in with suicide but, it has yet to find a solution.

The only thing that has been shown is how to identify when someone is going through

this situation of bullying. Showing signs of depression, like ongoing sadness, withdrawal from

others, losing interest in favorite activities, or trouble sleeping or eating, saying or expressing

that they cant handle things anymore, and making comments that things would be better without
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them. If a person is displaying these symptoms, talk to them about your concerns and get them

help right away, such as from a counselor, doctor, or a loved one.

Something we need to understand is that suicide is preventable. Everyone has a way to

get better, and to look for help. The solutions are also very simple. We need to come together as

a community and to help each other as much as possible.

Our medical system should be a start to finding solutions. As it was stated only half of the

people were tested to find out their suicide ideations but, that should be meant for everyone not

just half. We would never know if those half that werent tested had any thoughts on suicide.

Everyone deserves the same amount of attention. I also go on to say that social workers are also

one of the best solutions to the medical field problem when it comes to suicide. Social workers

will make sure that everyone is tested, and better yet that if the attention is needed to prevent the

suicide from happening that what ever is needed gets done.

Furthermore, when it comes to rural areas a solution has already been conducted and put

into work. Thus, the programs should continue in these areas especially that suicide rates in these

areas have gone down year after year because of programs such as Better Todays. I also

believe that the idea of guns in the rural area should handled and taken care of because it allows

people to have a deadly weapon and that would not be great if its in the hand of someone who

suffers from depression. If guns are not needed, then people should not have them. The last

solution could also be more services in these areas. People need to have access to services

because those services can say a life. In rural areas it is not so common for people to be close to a

service center which is why a lot more suicides are caused. If the programs, gun control, and

service buildings being built all come to be the suicide rates will be at it lowest for a long time.
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Bullying is one cause that really doesnt have a solution when its comes to it ties to

suicide. The bullying is not always able to be stopped because not everyone sees when its

happening. The only way we can put a stop to such an action is only by people actually speaking

up on the matter. People tend to be afraid to speak up because they are afraid that the bullies will

continue and may be even worse if you have spoken to someone about it. People can not be

afraid to speak on a situation on something that is causing them any pain. Another solution is if

you see someone showing the symptoms find them help. Helping each other is another way we

can solve the problem of suicide. Thus, this goes into my experience.

About two years ago, one of my best friends passed away due to suicide. Its safe to say

that suicide affects everyone around them. For me this was one of the worst times in my life and

I feel like people could have helped him for him to not have taken his life. Devastation filled the

air for me in the moment I heard about it. All the bullying he went through that not even me his

best friend knew about, caused his death. This is something that we must speak up in order to

save lives.

A suicide can have an impact even if you did

not know the person. It may be that you somehow

became involved in what happened or that they were

part of your community. This is something I can

relate to due to my experience. Whatever the circumstances, it is important to recognize that the

suicide of a stranger can still have a profound effect on you it may not cause you to grieve in the

same way as family and friends, but it can trigger strong emotions and questions. It is important

that you find someone you can talk to and seek support from (How suicide affects others).
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Anyone can suffer, but anyone can help. As far as, bullying it is important that we understand

that we are all the same and that we shouldnt judge others based on race, gender, sexual

orientation. We must all come together instead of judging. We all need to bring the message of

peace, love, and positivity and that to me is the perfect solution. Coming together is what is

necessary to bring attention and to bring awareness to suicide. Suicide doesnt just end your life

it stops it from getting better.

Moreover, if you need any help and just someone to talk to you can call the suicide

hotline. They can all help prevent suicide. The Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential

support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and

best practices for professionals. The hotline has saved more lives than we can even imagine so

this is always a recommended way to go.

All in all, we know many things about suicide, but not enough. What we do know is not

being communicated as well as it should. We need to generate far more public awareness of how

prevalent a killer suicide really is and of the symptoms of and treatments for depression and the

other psychiatric disorders implicated in suicide. We need to bring awareness for this dreadful

crisis. Understanding of the background and how this impacts society and the nation is key.

Suicide has not only affected us as a community and a nation but, also has affected and

continues to affect the world. Many solutions have been proposed, but progress takes time.

Nonetheless, as more people try to solve the situation there is hope that suicide rates go down.

Suicide is preventable. Never give up. People are here. It is never the answer to take your own

life. Your life is worth more and think about the people that you will affect. We require a society

with its eyes open to this preventable tragedy, a society that does not tolerate the intolerable.
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Worked cited:

Beck, Julie. The Growing Risk of Suicide in Rural America. The Atlantic, Atlantic

Media Company, 10 Mar. 2015, www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/03/the-growing-risk-

of-suicide-in-rural-america/387313/.

Bullying and Suicide. Bullying Statistics, 7 July 2015,

www.bullyingstatistics.org/content/bullying-and-suicide.html.

Cerebrum. Suicide in the Young: An Essay, 1 July 2001,

dana.org/Cerebrum/2001/Suicide_in_the_Young__An_Essay/.

Home. Lifeline, suicidepreventionlifeline.org/.

How Suicide Affects Others. Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide,

uksobs.org/about/suicide-bereavement/how-suicide-can-affect-you/how-suicide-affects-others/.

Kirkwood, Ann D., and Bridget E Weller. High Evaluation of the Better Todays/Better

Tomorrows Youth Suicide Prevention Program: Increasing Mental Health Literacy in Rural

Communities.

Mueller, Anna S., et al. Suicide Ideation and Bullying Among US Adolescents:

Examining the Intersections of Sexual Orientation, Gender, and Race/Ethnicity. American

Journal of Public Health, vol. 105, no. 5, 2015, pp. 980985., doi:10.2105/ajph.2014.302391.
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