What is suicide and suicide thoughts?
Suicide, taking your own life, is a tragic reaction to stressful life situations — and all the more tragic because suicide can be prevented. Whether you’re considering suicide or know someone who feels suicidal, learn suicide warning signs and how to reach out for immediate help and professional treatment. You may save a life — your own or someone else’s. It may seem like there’s no way to solve your problems and that suicide is the only way to end the pain. But you can take steps to stay safe and start enjoying your life again.

Symptoms
Suicide warning signs or suicidal thoughts include:
– Talking about suicide for example, making statements such as “I’m going to kill myself,” “I wish I were dead” or “I wish I hadn’t been born”
– Getting the means to take your own life, such as buying a gun or stockpiling pills
– Withdrawing from social contact and wanting to be left alone
– Having mood swings, such as being emotionally high one day and deeply discouraged the next
– Being preoccupied with death, dying or violence
– Feeling trapped or hopeless about a situation
– Increasing use of alcohol or drugs
– Changing normal routine, including eating or sleeping patterns
– Doing risky or self-destructive things, such as using drugs or driving recklessly
– Giving away belongings or getting affairs in order when there’s no other logical explanation for doing this
– Saying goodbye to people as if they won’t be seen again
– Developing personality changes or being severely anxious or agitated, particularly when experiencing some of the warning signs listed above

Warning signs aren’t always obvious, and they may vary from person to person. Some people make their intentions clear, while others keep suicidal thoughts and feelings secret. If you’re feeling suicidal, but you aren’t immediately thinking of hurting yourself, remember:
– Your emotions are not fixed—they are constantly changing. How you feel today may not be the same as how you felt yesterday or how you’ll feel tomorrow or next week.
– Your absence would create grief and anguish in the lives of friends and loved ones.
– There are many things you can still accomplish in your life.
– There are sights, sounds, and experiences in life that have the ability to delight and lift you—and that you would miss.
– Your ability to experience pleasurable emotions is equal to your ability to experience distressing emotions.
– A suicidal crisis is almost always temporary
– Even problems that seem hopeless have solutions

Causes
Suicidal thoughts have many causes. Most often, suicidal thoughts are the result of feeling like you can’t cope when you’re faced with what seems to be an overwhelming life situation. If you don’t have hope for the future, you may mistakenly think suicide is a solution. You may experience a sort of tunnel vision, where in the middle of a crisis you believe suicide is the only way out. There also may be a genetic link to suicide. People who complete suicide or who have suicidal thoughts or behavior are more likely to have a family history of suicide.

Risk factors
Although attempted suicide is more frequent for women, men are more likely than women to complete suicide because they typically use more-lethal methods, such as a firearm. You may be at risk of suicide if you:
– Attempted suicide before
– Feel hopeless, worthless, agitated, socially isolated or lonely
– Experience a stressful life event, such as the loss of a loved one, military service, a breakup, or financial or legal problems
– Have a substance abuse problem — alcohol and drug abuse can worsen thoughts of suicide and make you feel reckless or impulsive enough to act on your thoughts
– Have suicidal thoughts and have access to firearms in your home
– Have an underlying psychiatric disorder, such as major depression, post-traumatic stress disorder or bipolar disorder
– Have a family history of mental disorders, substance abuse, suicide, or violence, including physical or sexual abuse
– Have a medical condition that can be linked to depression and suicidal thinking, such as chronic disease, chronic pain or terminal illness
– Are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender with an unsupportive family or in a hostile environment

Children and teenagers
Suicide in children and teenagers can follow stressful life events. What a young person sees as serious and insurmountable may seem minor to an adult — such as problems in school or the loss of a friendship. In some cases, a child or teen may feel suicidal due to certain life circumstances that he or she may not want to talk about, such as:
– Having a psychiatric disorder, including depression
– Loss or conflict with close friends or family members
– History of physical or sexual abuse
– Problems with alcohol or drugs
– Physical or medical issues, for example, becoming pregnant or having a sexually transmitted infection
– Being the victim of bullying
– Being uncertain of sexual orientation
– Reading or hearing an account of suicide or knowing a peer who died by suicide

If you have suicidal thoughts and feelings. Things to do:
– Talk with someone every day, preferably face to face. Even though you may feel like withdrawing, ask trusted friends and acquaintances to spend time with you. Or continue to call a crisis helpline and talk about your feelings.
– Make a safety plan. Develop a set of steps that you can follow during a suicidal crisis. It should include contact numbers for your doctor or therapist, as well as friends and family members who will help in an emergency.
– Make a written schedule for yourself every day and stick to it, no matter what. Keep a regular routine as much as possible, even when your feelings seem out of control.
– Get out in the sun or into nature for at least 30 minutes a day.
– Exercise as vigorously as is safe for you. To get the most benefit, aim for 30 minutes of exercise per day. But you can start small. Three 10-minute bursts of activity can have a positive effect on mood.
– Make time for things that bring you joy. Even if very few things bring you pleasure at the moment, force yourself to do the things you used to enjoy.
– Remember your personal goals. You may have always wanted to travel to a particular place, read a specific book, own a pet, move to another place, learn a new hobby, volunteer, go back to school, or start a family. Write your personal goals down.

Things to avoid:
– Being alone. Solitude can make suicidal thoughts even worse. Visit a friend, or family member, or pick up the phone and call a crisis helpline.
– Alcohol and drugs. Drugs and alcohol can increase depression, hamper your problem-solving ability, and can make you act impulsively.
– Doing things that make you feel worse. Listening to sad music, looking at certain photographs, reading old letters, or visiting a loved one’s grave can all increase negative feelings.
– Thinking about suicide and other negative thoughts. Try not to become preoccupied with suicidal thoughts as this can make them even stronger. Don’t think and rethink negative thoughts. Find a distraction. Giving yourself a break from suicidal thoughts can help, even if it’s for a short time.

5 steps to recovery 
– Identify triggers or situations that lead to feelings of despair or generate suicidal thoughts, such as an anniversary of a loss, alcohol, or stress from relationships. Find ways to avoid these places, people, or situations.
– Take care of yourself. Eat right, don’t skip meals, and get plenty of sleep. Exercise is also key: it releases endorphins, relieves stress, and promotes emotional well-being.
– Build your support network. Surround yourself with positive influences and people who make you feel good about yourself. The more you’re invested in other people and your community, the more you have to lose—which will help you stay positive and on the recovery track.
– Develop new activities and interests. Find new hobbies, volunteer activities, or work that gives you a sense of meaning and purpose. When you’re doing things you find fulfilling, you’ll feel better about yourself and feelings of despair are less likely to return.
– Learn to deal with stress in a healthy way. Find healthy ways to keep your stress levels in check, including exercising, meditating, using sensory strategies to relax, practicing simple breathing exercises, and challenging self-defeating thoughts.

If you have concerns about a friend or family member, asking about suicidal thoughts and intentions is the best way to identify risk!!!!!