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    Suicide, A Preventable Tragedy: A Four Part Series
    Suicide, A Preventable Tragedy: A Four Part Series
    Suicide, A Preventable Tragedy: A Four Part Series
    Ebook119 pages1 hour

    Suicide, A Preventable Tragedy: A Four Part Series

    By B. A. (Beverly) Smith

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    About this ebook

    We all know this is a dangerous world; dangers from outside our country, dangers from within our country, and dangers from within our community. But the most tragic and often the biggest danger to our loved ones, comes from themselves. Many people are oblivious to this fact, until they have a suicidal loved one. I have heard too many people scream the same phrases of denial, ask the same heartbreaking questions, and wrestle with the same unyielding guilt. My wish is that you, or your family, are never one of them.
    Our great country is in trouble. In the United States, statistics reveal we lose a person to a suicide every 14 minutes with an estimated 1500 attempts at suicide every day. Daily we are losing our most valuable resources, from the promise of our young to our prime workforce to the wisdom of our elders. Yet there is no great public outcry. If this were cases of the flu - forces would be mobilized; volunteers would be coming from everywhere. This is simply unacceptable. It is up to us to act, to do something about it.
    Hello. I am so glad that you are here. My name is Beverly and I am a Registered Nurse. I have over 30 years of experience in helping people in crisis. By far my most intense experiences came from over 15 years working in a state-run mental institution. In over 30 years of experience in helping people in crisis, the most heart-wrenching of my duties was trying to help family and friends "make sense" out of their loved ones' suicidal acts. How much easier it would be to help them understand the mind contemplating suicide, to recognize the risk, and how to intervene - before the event, instead of while they were struggling with grief, shock, pain, and guilt. This then is the reason behind this book, broken down into smaller segments to facilitate learning and stimulate your thoughts.
    In Part 1 you will get a broad look at suicide and its prevalence. To fix a problem one first needs to acknowledge that there is a problem.
    In Part 2 you will be asked to think, and look into yourself. Attitudes will be challenged. Common myths will be examined, addressed and debunked by Facts. Risk factors will be identified and clustered.
    In Part 3 we will put those Risk factors to use and look at assessing an individual’s risk level. We will explore combinations of factors, the correlations between mental illness and suicide, and the link between depression and suicide. We will review some common depressive signs and symptoms, and see how these may present differently. Finally we will look at the warning signs of suicide and Suicide Crisis.
    In Part 4 you will be exposed to tips and techniques to get answers to those critical questions, we will peek into the human mind, and pull it all together into some practical helping interventions to save a life.
    This book is written for everyone, professional or laborer, rich or poor. It is for you with the co-worker that’s been acting odd lately, you with the teenager that is worrying you, you with the ageing parent that just returned from the doctor’s office, you with the husband who just spontaneously made out his will, for you the guy that keeps telling his girl to “snap out of it”, you with the bad break-up, and for you the family dealing with financial or health problems. Did I miss anyone?
    One person Can make a difference. Will you?
    Beverly Smith BS, RN

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherB. A. (Beverly) Smith
    Release dateDec 11, 2013
    ISBN9781310314216
    Suicide, A Preventable Tragedy: A Four Part Series
    Author

    B. A. (Beverly) Smith

    Hello. I am Beverly. A normal woman in a hectic world; sometimes "Super" at other times "Wonder” Woman.My main job titles include Mother, Grandmother and wife of over 28 years. Secondary titles (though less formal, still of utmost importance) include Domestic Engineer and Hearth Manager; not to mention that I am a master at juggling.Professionally I am a Registered Nurse, specializing in psychiatric nursing with over 30 years of experience in helping people in crisis. This "calling" started with a degree in Psychology from VPI&SU in 1981. This was combined with a RN degree in 1992 and advanced into the specialty with ANCC certification in Mental Health and Mental Illness in 1995.I have worked in many professional areas over the years including medical hospitals (general medical and cardiac care), counseling, mental hospitals, and home health. The specific job titles have varied, including Psychiatric Nurse, RN Clinician, and Behavioral Nurse Specialist. By far the most intense experiences came from over 15 years working in a state-run mental institution in areas of Detox, Substance Abuse, Adolescence, and Acute Admissions. The most challenging experiences came from Psychiatric Home Health Nursing.Hobbies (when time allows) include Music, Cooking, Art, crafts, photography, physical fitness, volleyball/softball and raising northern breeds Siberian Huskies and American Eskimos.Writing has been a lifelong passion. It is something that I am compelled to do. Whether writing fiction, poetry, or a professional in-service the enjoyment I get is the same. So many stories clamoring for attention, impatiently waiting to be told.

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      Book preview

      Suicide, A Preventable Tragedy - B. A. (Beverly) Smith

      Part One

      Chapter 1 – Prologue

      Suicidal individuals will display clues and warning signs of their suicidal intentions. Unfortunately others are often blind to these clues, unaware of the significance of these signs, or simply do not know how to respond to them. They do not realize that one person can make a difference. Picture this:

      On your way to work you see a face you recognize, but she is sitting quietly by herself, not in her usual rush. You think to yourself she looks so sad today, but you have places to be so you hurry on your way.

      But it isn’t that she is ‘sad today‘; she has simply given up on pretending to be happy, of putting on her fake smile, of telling herself that today will be better, today someone will act like they care.

      She manages to plod through the day, doing what is expected- though she is going in slow motion and her misery is evident. By quitting time she has finally totally given up looking for the light in the dark room she calls her life.

      The next morning she is found dead.

      When you hear the news, you think back to yesterday.

      Do you consider that you could have been part of the problem or part of the solution?

      * * * *

      Chapter 2 - Introduction

      Welcome to Part 1 in this series. I am so glad you are here.

      Let me introduce myself. My name is Beverly and I have over 30 years of experience in helping people in crisis, starting with a degree in Psychology from VPI&SU in 1981. I have been a Registered Nurse since 1992, and board certified in 1995 as a specialist in Mental Health and Mental Illness. I have worked in many areas over the years including counseling, medical hospitals, mental hospitals, and home health. The specific job titles have varied, including Psychiatric Nurse and Behavioral Nurse Specialist. By far my most intense experiences came from over 15 years working in a state-run mental institution.

      The most heart-wrenching of my duties was trying to help family and friends make sense out of their loved ones' suicide attempts. Always the same difficult to answer questions: Why?, How could we have known?, What could we have done?, How is this possible? And my own thoughts, how much better it would be to help them with the information they needed, before the tragic event, instead of while they were struggling with grief, shock and guilt.

      This then is the reason behind this series, broken down into smaller segments to facilitate learning and stimulate your thoughts. I sincerely hope you join me on this quest.

      * * * *

      Chapter 3 - The Danger From Within

      We are all part of a community. We are mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, friends, co-workers, acquaintances. To a large degree, our relationships with others define us. We try to teach and instruct our loved ones on how to be safe in today's world. Today I am not talking about Threats from the outside world; Dangerous people, dangerous places, not even Microbes in lakes, or salmonella in food. Most of us do a good job talking about the external dangers, like Stranger Danger.

      What you may not know is that often the biggest danger to our loved ones comes from within them and that this danger is often amplified by those around them. We all see the news reports of suicides in our communities, or nationally if the victim is rich or famous. Most people believe that this could never happen in their family. Yet it can, and it does, no family is immune to this threat. That can be the most difficult fact to face. Many people are oblivious to this fact until after a loved one has attempted, or worse, succeeded at suicide. I have heard too many people scream the same phrases of denial, ask the same heartbreaking questions, wrestle with the same unyielding guilt. My wish is that you, or your family, are never one of them.

      We all do the best we can. But you can't possibly help, if you are not aware of a problem. It is true that Knowledge is power. I want to give you some information that you may need, so you don't feel helpless. Unlike the random acts of violence that seem to be ever more frequent in the world today, this is a danger that we can all do something about. Now let’s get started on What You Need to Know, but may never have been told.

      We all know what Suicide is, though we may not understand it. It has been defined as intentional self-inflicted death, self-murder, an act to voluntarily end one's own life. The term Suicide refers to a past act, something that has been done and cannot be undone. It may be the ultimate act of self-hatred, or an attempt to control the time and circumstances of death. It is also the last effort at communication, that one's situation was intolerable and that they could find no other alternatives. It is a tragic reaction to stressful life situations. While it is terminal to the individual it also has negative ripple effects; impacting the family, the community, and the Nation. Suicidality is a term, used by professionals, to assess an individual's level of risk. This is the part of the Suicidal thinking process where there is a chance of changing the outcome. The danger comes from inside, but the help must come from outside the individual.

      * * * *

      Chapter 4 - How Common Is It?

      First you need to grasp the prevalence of suicide, and understand that the incidences of reported suicides are on the rise. Available statistics are never current they often lag a year or more behind. I personally believe that the numbers of victims listed are underreported and that the epidemic is spreading. If I am incorrect on that assumption the numbers from 2009 are, from my view, still unacceptable. Nationally, the suicide rate increased 2.4 % over 2008 to equal approximately 12.0 suicides per 100,000 people for the year 2009, to12.4 per 100,000 in 2010.(1) The rate of suicide has been increasing since the year 2000 and shows no indication of slowing down. These numbers are staggering, and beyond tragic, as so many of these could have been prevented. Here are the released National Statistics figures from the National Center for Health Statistics:

      General National Statistics 2010

      There were 38,364 reported suicide deaths.

      That equates to more than 100 Americans every day, or more than 4 every hour!

      Suicide is the Tenth leading cause of death overall

      Suicide is the Second-leading cause of death among those 10 -24 years old.

      Suicide is the Third leading cause of death among those 15-24 years old.

      Suicide is the Fourth leading cause of death among those 5-14 years old.

      Suicide is the Fourth leading cause of death for adults between the ages of 18 and 65

      Suicide is the Fourth leading cause of death for adults between the ages of 25-44.

      Suicide is the Eighth leading cause of death for adults between the ages of 45-64.

      The suicide rates for men rise with age, most significantly after age 65.

      The suicide rates for women rise between the ages of 45-54 years old, and again after age 75.

      The rate of suicide in men 65+ is seven times that of females who are 65+.

      There are four male suicides for every female suicide, but three times as many females as males attempt suicide.

      If this isn't bad enough, consider that not all suicides are reported, many are listed as Accidental deaths. National Statistics for last year and this year have not yet been released. But

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