World Suicide Prevention Day is observed on September 10 every year
Highlights
- Early recognition of warning signs can help save lives
- Professional help on right time can help prevent suicide
- This day highlights the need to create awareness about suicide prevention
Every few seconds, someone loses their life to suicide. Observed annually on the 10th of September, World Suicide Prevention Day aims to raise awareness about suicide prevention and 'Hope through Action' with a variety of activities around the world.
When you recognize someone's struggles, reach out and provide them with emotional support, comfort, compassion, and genuine empathy; help them with decision making and resolving problems and instill positivity amidst their struggles so they move forward and seek help. This is known as psychological first aid.
Nothing communicates support better than letting someone know, that you would be there in times of need, reminding them there are always ways in which things can get better. As of 2019, there were more than 139 thousand suicides in India, 45% of which were due to mental illnesses such as depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia.
Learn How To Deal With Stress:
Seek professional assistance to identify coping strategies tailored to your specific situation and create a "safety plan" to refer to if you're feeling hopeless.
- Follow treatment schedule. Don't miss any sessions or appointments.
- Keep a list of names and numbers times including doctors, therapists, crisis centers, friends, and family whom you can contact at all times.
- Plan your daily routine. Music or funny movies can help.
- Avoid drugs and alcohol as they heighten impulses and trigger negative feelings.
- Express your ideas and feelings that you value and appreciate in writing.
5 Steps To Recovery:
- Overwhelming emotion can cloud your judgment, leading to self-harming thoughts but with the right treatment and effective coping strategies, you can learn how to help yourself feel better and be hopeful about life again.
- Identify and watch out for warning signs or triggers.
- Keep yourself healthy. Eat nutritiously and take plenty of rest. Workouts release endorphins and relieve stress while promoting emotional health.
- Build a support network. Surround yourself with positivity. Reach out to loved ones and friends when needed. Join a support network to cope with suicidal thoughts and understand all the possible ways of getting help.
- Develop new interests. Try out new hobbies, volunteer for activities, or jobs that give you a sense of meaning and purpose. Your self-esteem will improve when you're doing things you enjoy.
- Deal with stress in a healthy manner. Exercise, meditation, sensory strategies to relax and challenging self-defeating thoughts are healthy ways to reduce stress.
Suicide prevention day 2021: Seek medical help timely to deal with mental health issues
Photo Credit: iStock
Motivate Yourself
- Being alive for your pet, children, family, or something you enjoy doing at work/home. Finding meaning in your life can make a significant difference.
- Be mindful of the fact that problems are temporary, but suicide isn't and is never the answer to any problem. Be patient and wait for the circumstances and pain to change.
- In the absence of your presence, your friends and family members would suffer from grief and anguish.
- In spite of your age, there are still many things you can accomplish.
- You're just as capable of experiencing positive emotions as negative ones.
It takes a lot of guts to face death, finds the willpower and courage to overcome it and pull back from the edge of disaster. Always remember that your emotions aren't static. Yesterday, today, and next week may not be the same. Choose actions that matter.
(Fortis 24x7 helpline: +91 8376804102)
(Dr. Venkatesh Babu, Consultant- Psychiatrist, Fortis Hospitals Bangalore)
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