Suicides: data, statistics and associated mental disorders.

A comprehensive report on the causes, not only psychological, of suicides.

Suicide is the act of deliberately taking one's own life. Suicidal behavior is any action that could lead a person to die.

Suicide, leading cause of unnatural death in Spain

Suicide is the leading cause of unnatural death in Spain.. There are twice as many suicides as deaths due to traffic accidents. In Spain there are 10 deaths by suicide every day. However, the rate is low compared to other European Union countries. Almost 4,000 people died in 2014 for this reason within Spanish borders. A 20% increase in incidence compared to the data recorded in 2007..

There are societies where it is more acceptable, as for example in Japan, and others less so. In southern countries, with a strong cultural component that draws from the Catholic religion, suicide is frowned upon.

Why would someone decide to end his or her own life?

Often, these people are trying to get away from a are trying to remove themselves from a life situation that they find impossible to manage.. In attempting suicide they are seeking relief. They often feel ashamed, guilty, or like a burden to others. They feel victimized, and have feelings of rejection, loss or loneliness. Suicide attempts often reflect cries for help.

Possible symptoms include difficulty concentrating or thinking clearly, engaging in self-destructive behaviors (cutting oneself, excessive drinking), withdrawing from friends or not wanting to go out and/or changing eating or sleeping habits.

Psychological profile of the person who attempts suicide

These people often do not seek help because they believe that nothing will help them, because they do not want to tell anyone that they have problems, because they think that seeking help is a sign of weakness. In other cases, they do not seek help because they do not know where to turn for help. Keep in mind that a person who is thinking of committing suicide has a personal and family history behind them, as well as a certain psychological predisposition.. Suicide is not an isolated event, there is no single cause. It is multifactorial.

There are triggers, but it is clear that the decision is not taken "just" because your boyfriend/girlfriend left you or because you lost your job. If that were the case, we all wouldn't have attempted suicide at some point. Suicide attempts may be motivated by a mixture of genetic and environmental factors.. There is no profile of the person who attempts to take his or her own life and, therefore, it is not easy to predict suicidal behavior.

Recidivism, one of the risk factors

One third of people who have attempted suicide will attempt it again within a year.. 10% of people who threaten or attempt suicide eventually take their own lives. It is not an act of selfishness or cowardice, it is the outcome of a process.

According to experts, when someone executes the decision to commit suicide (i.e., seconds before the action is carried out) a "short-circuit" reaction occurs in the person, it could be said that he/she suffers "transient mental alienation" where "the survival instinct fails".

Suicide and associated mental disorders (comorbidity)

The person who decides to commit suicide does not necessarily show any mental disorder. However, it is true that 90% of suicide attempts are usually based on a mental disorder or an incurable condition. or some incurable condition.

1. Depression

The most common mental disorder in suicide cases is undoubtedly depression. Depression is a powerful predictor of suicide attempts and of completed and completed suicides.. However, research shows that between 13% and 40% of people who commit suicide do not meet the diagnostic criteria for Major Depressive Disorder.

There is evidence that the risk of suicide can sometimes increase as depression fades. This may be because people with major depression begin to experience improvement and a return of energy. During this period of time, called the "window period," the patient is still depressed but with enough energy to make a suicide attempt. However, this does not mean that a deeply depressed person is out of danger.

2. Drug addiction, schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder...

About 10% have other diagnoses, such as substance use disorder (e.g., alcoholism), schizophrenia, schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder, etc. (e.g. alcoholism), schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder or bipolar disorder. Patients with borderline personality disorder, for example, either with or without depression, are twice as likely to attempt suicide as patients diagnosed with depression alone.

3. Suicides due to 'subclinical' causes

Between 5% and 10% of people have no identifiable mental disorder.. We assume that they probably have "subclinical symptoms," i.e., they have some symptoms of one or more mental disorders but do not fully meet the diagnostic criteria.

Beyond psychopathology: "rational suicides".

It has been found, however, that an undetermined number of people commit what experts have termed "rational suicide.". In these cases, suicide is a prepared decision to end one's own life, often due to an incurable disease.

As a final fact, in most cases of women with suicidal behavior, the quest to end one's life is usually due to an emotional issue.. On the other hand, those who die by suicide are more likely to be men, mainly older and with some mental or medical pathology. This is reflected in the statistics.

In general, men commit suicide three times more often than women, but it is also known that women are more likely to commit suicide than men.However, it is also known that women attempt suicide three times more often than men because they report higher levels of stress and anxiety. By this, we do not mean that they just want to get attention. That is not true. They want to commit suicide, but they don't succeed.

The most commonly used methods and systems for committing suicide

The method chosen to attempt suicide predicts the "success" of subsequent attempts. Among the most commonly used methods is hanging (used by half of the suicides in Spain and mostly men).

The second most used method is the jumping into the void chosen by a large number of women. The third option is poisoning by substance abuse. The "favorite" month for suicides is June.

Suicide in the world

Suicide is an individual action, but there are countries where it is culturally more accepted than in others. For different reasons, such as economic, social and cultural ones, there are countries where the suicide rate is higher than in others, there are countries where the suicide rate is much higher than in other countries.. You can check it in the following map.

A taboo subject

Suicide is still a taboo subject in our country, and in many others.and in many other countries. It is a failure as a system, politically, socially, health-wise, legally and even culturally. And yet, we still have little data and information about it. Why does it happen? What can we do? Can it be avoided? These are some of the questions we are still trying to solve.