How Do You Help Someone With Suicidal Thoughts?

Suicidal thoughts don’t just appear overnight. They are the result of a long process. Unfortunately, this process often goes unnoticed.

Depression isn’t always obvious.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a person commits suicide every 40 seconds. It is a common cause of death among people 15 to 44 years old and affects more men than women.

Timely intervention can be crucial.

Signs that something is wrong

Suicide is more common among the young and the elderly. In general, people with suicidal thoughts are often single and have few friends. Thoughts of suicide are also common after a loss.

Whatever the case, we need to be aware of the signs of suicidal thoughts. The most common are the following:

• Neglect of appearance
• Sleeping too much
• Experiencing Stages of Severe Insomnia
• Isolation and Rejection from Companionship
• Frequent sadness or irritability
• Saying things like “I want to die” or “My life is worth nothing”
• Indifference to everything
• Regular consumption of alcohol or other drugs
• Loss of appetite and loss of appetite

There are also cases of hidden depression. The symptoms of this can be very subtle and difficult to detect.

In these cases, the person may be evasive to questions about his or her private life. The person may be obsessively always busy or constantly laughing.

Loneliness promotes suicidal thoughts

If you suspect that someone is having suicidal thoughts, it is important to avoid leaving them alone.

Over time, the suicidal person begins to close themselves off from everything. He doesn’t want to talk to anyone. Moreover , he does not want to leave the house and it is becoming increasingly difficult for him to maintain a routine.

It won’t be easy, but what we have to do is try to talk to the person.

It is normal for suicidal individuals to reject any kind of conversation. This makes it essential that conversations are subtle. We should not overwhelm the person with our advice or our concern and fear.

The main reason for getting through to the person is to avoid further isolation.

How to help someone with suicidal thoughts

When a person begins to indicate that he or she would rather die, this should always be taken seriously. People don’t say these things for no reason. This is especially true if they repeat it.

In these cases you should always take action.

The preventive measures you can take to help a person with suicidal thoughts are as follows:

• It is important to openly ask the person how they are feeling. Do listen carefully to what he says.

• Do not judge. This is critical. Nothing the person says should be a target of judgment. Judging can keep the person silent, when it is just so important that he says what he feels.
• Be straightforward. It ‘s always better to say it like it is. Ask if the person has thought about committing suicide and respect what he or she says.
• Don’t panic. What the other person needs is solid support, not another problem. You must remain calm and temperate.
• Help the person visualize the effects of suicide. It’s a good idea to ask the person what they think will happen to the people they love after they commit suicide.

• Talk about the problem or loss. Rather than looking for answers, it is more important to let the person express what he or she is feeling.

Finally…

The best thing you can do is help the person see the problem or loss in a different way.

• Emphasize the positive side. Ask the person about the positive things he still has in his life. Find out what has kept him from committing suicide so far.
• Do not leave the person alone.
• Encourage the person to ask for help. Cases like these should be assessed by an expert. Without putting pressure on the person, motivate him to seek a psychologist or psychiatrist.

If the person is absolutely unwilling to receive help and shows signs of instability, then it is time to act.

You must warn the emergency services or close family in order to intervene. Never choose to remain passive or just ‘wait and see’.

After all , a life is at stake.

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