For those who have thoughts of suicide

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If you have thoughts of suicide you should not keep it to yourself, but then you need to seek help. Talk to someone you trust, call a guide or seek care. Thoughts of suicide are common, and nothing to be ashamed of. You’re not alone.

Tell someone how you feel

If you feel so bad that you think life is not worth living and have thoughts or plans to take your life, do not keep it to yourself. Then you need to talk to someone you trust. 

You may feel alone and outside in your situation, but in fact, many have thought and known you. Putting words on their mind before a person who listens can help you find new ways to look at your problems and discover new ways to solve them.

Who should I talk to?

You can talk to a person working in healthcare, or to someone you know. You can also contact someone on a phone or chat call. There are people who are used to listening and who can give advice and support on how you can move on and start to feel better.

Do not hesitate to ask for help

There may be many people in your area who want to help without your understanding. So tell your loved ones how you feel and be clear that you need help. For example, you can ask for a company when you visit the care.

If you continue to feel bad without being able to get help, suicidal thoughts can change into a constantly repeating pattern of thinking where you ultimately think suicide is the only solution. If you do, you may feel completely abandoned and useless, and ashamed of your situation so that it becomes difficult to ask for help. 

You may also have temporarily impaired ability to see the consequences of your actions, which can sometimes lead to you doing things you would otherwise never do. If you have such thoughts, you need help quickly to break it.

When should I seek care?

Seek care at a health care center if you have thoughts of suicide that do not go over or if you feel so bad that you have difficulty coping with everyday life. There you can either receive treatment or guidance for further assistance.

What are the thoughts of suicide?

Anyone can have problems or end up in situations that feel impossible to get out of. Then death may appear as a possible path away from suffering. For example, it may be a disappointment not to live up to your own or others’ expectations, severe losses or failure.      

It is not always possible to explain why you get suicidal thoughts, but they are almost always triggered by a severe mental illness. When you feel mentally ill, the ability to find solutions to problems can be temporarily impaired and then suicide can appear as a way out.

If you lost someone or something

Thoughts of suicide may come from losing a person who means a lot to you, for example in the event of a death or a separation. Or you feel that you have lost your sense of security or identity, for example

  • You lost the job.
  • You have been bullied.
  • You have been abused. 
  • You have had a serious illness.
  • You ponder your gender identity.

Reactions to crisis and grief

When you mourn or go through a crisis, it is common to feel that life is not worth living. You may have feelings of guilt for things that have happened, or feel anxious about what the future will be like. Your feelings are a natural reaction to what you have been through and you may need the support of others to be able to see that there is a life after the crisis. 

If you have been through difficult things, it can trigger anxiety and depression and you may need help to deal with it. Do not wait too long to seek help in health care if you have severe anxiety or suspect you are depressed. 

Can be associated with mental illness

Often suicidal thoughts are associated with depression or other mental illnesses. People who feel mentally good rarely take their lives. For example, if you are depressed or anxious, you may lose the desire to do fun things, meet other people, reward yourself or take the initiative.

You can also have feelings of guilt and feel unsuccessful despite your efforts to manage your life and solve your problems. Then suicide may seem like a solution, even though you don’t really want to die but fight harder than many others to live. You never have to be ashamed to end up in such a situation, it can happen to anyone and there is help to be had. 

Sometimes the thoughts of suicide can serve as comfort when existence feels too difficult to handle. Most people who think about suicide or make a suicide attempt will find other and better solutions eventually.

What can I do for myself?

If you have been depressed for a long time, and have lost the appetite for what you would otherwise like, you may have suffered from depression. Then it is important that you get treatment for it. 

Manage anxiety

Having anxiety is not dangerous and completely natural. Anxiety always goes away after a while, even if it doesn’t feel that way. Learning to recognize an anxiety reaction and learning to find ways to deal with it can give you a sense of security that makes the anxiety not feel as overwhelming and scary. Learn more about anxiety and what you can do about it.

Avoid alcohol

If your thoughts control your behavior so that you are exposed to risks or have difficulty controlling your impulses, it is inappropriate to drink alcohol or use drugs. Then the behavior can be reinforced so that you do things that you would not otherwise have done. Anxiety, depression and sleep problems are also often exacerbated by alcohol.

Food, movement, sleep and rest

When you feel ill, it is easy to forget to take care of your basic needs. An example of this is eating nutritious food and getting enough exercise, sleep and rest. Sleeping during the dark hours of the day, eating and drinking regularly, and moving in a way that suits one’s self can give you stronger resistance to anxiety and hard thoughts. 

Taking care of oneself

Asking others for help can mean positive changes that eventually lead to better strategies for taking care of yourself. You may need to learn how to deal with stress, rest, set boundaries and reward yourself more often.

Your loved ones may also need to know what they can do to help you. 

People who have made a suicide attempt and survived often say that they have learned to think in a new way that makes them cope with their lives.

Contact with others

Sometimes it can be good to have contact with others who have similar experiences. One way might be to   contact a patient or close associate  or one of the following organizations:

  • Suicide Zero  – a non-profit organization that works nationally to reduce suicide rates.
  • The National Federation of SPES, Suicide Prevention, and Survivor Support – an organization run by people who have lost a relative in suicide. 
  • MIND  – a non-profit association that works to provide human support and to increase knowledge about mental ill-health and suicide.
  • Bris , which offers support weekends for families where a parent has taken their life. Children and adults may meet others in the same situation and receive support to deal with life, grief, and lack.

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