Suicide
hideSuicide (Latin suicidium, from sui caedere, to kill oneself) is the intentional taking of one's own life. Many dictionaries also note the metaphorical sense of "willful destruction of one's self-interest" (e.g., "political suicide"). Suicide may occur for a number of reasons, including depression, shame, guilt, desperation, physical pain, emotional pressure, anxiety, financial difficulties, or other undesirable situations. The World Health Organization noted that over one million people commit suicide every year, and that it is one of the leading causes of death among teenagers and adults under 35. There are an estimated 10 to 20 million non-fatal attempted suicides every year worldwide.
Views on suicide have been influenced by cultural views on existential themes such as religion, honor, and the meaning of life. The Abrahamic religions consider suicide an offense towards God due to religious belief in the sanctity of life. In the West it was often regarded as a serious crime. Japanese views on honor and religion led to seppuku, one of the most painful methods of suicide, to be respected as a means to atone for mistakes or failure, or as a form of protest during the samurai era. In the 20th century, suicide in the form of self-immolation has been used as a form of protest, and in the form of kamikaze and suicide bombing as a military or terrorist tactic. Sati is a Hindu funeral practice in which the widow would immolate herself on her husband's funeral pyre, either willingly, or under pressure from the family and in-laws.
Medically assisted suicide (euthanasia, or the right to die) is currently a controversial ethical issue involving people who are terminally ill, in extreme pain, and/or have minimal quality of life through injury or illness. Self-sacrifice for others is not usually considered suicide, as the goal is not to kill oneself but to save another.
The predominant view of modern medicine is that suicide is a mental health concern, associated with psychological factors such as the difficulty of coping with depression, inescapable suffering or fear, or other mental disorders and pressures. A suicide attempt is sometimes interpreted as a "cry for help" and attention, or to express despair and the wish to escape, rather than a genuine intent to die. Most people who attempt suicide do not complete suicide on a first attempt; those who later gain a history of repetitions have a significantly higher probability of eventual completion of suicide.
For more information about Suicide, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with suicide attempts
Post-partum suicide attempt risks studied
Aug 06, 2008 |
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Although maternal suicide after giving birth is a relatively rare occurrence, suicide attempts often have long-lasting effects on the family and the infant. In a study published in the August 2008 issue of the American Jo ...
Mental health problems in childhood may predict later suicide attempts in males
Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry
Apr 06, 2009 |
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Most males who commit suicide or need hospital care for suicide attempts during their teen or early adult years appear to have high levels of psychiatric problems at age 8, according to a report in the April issue of Archives of ...
Young adults with post-traumatic stress disorder may be more likely to attempt suicide
Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry
Mar 02, 2009 |
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Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)—but not exposure to traumatic events without the development of PTSD—may be associated with subsequent attempted suicide in young adults, according to a report in the March issue of Archives of ...
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China defends role at Copenhagen
Dec 25, 2009 |
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China has defended its role at this month's climate change talks in Copenhagen, saying Premier Wen Jiabao played a key part in sealing an accord, after critics blamed Beijing for blocking negotiations.
Physician-assisted suicide: A perspective from advocates for people with disability
Dec 23, 2009 |
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Although public opinion in the United States on physician-assisted suicide is evenly divided, about half of states have either defeated bills to legalize assisted suicide or have passed laws explicitly banning it and only ...
Modern behavior of early humans found half-million years earlier than previously thought
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Dec 22, 2009 |
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Evidence of sophisticated, human behavior has been discovered by Hebrew University of Jerusalem researchers as early as 750,000 years ago - some half a million years earlier than has previously been estimated ...
Kew botanists discover more than 250 new plant species in 250th anniversary year
Dec 22, 2009 |
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Giant rainforest trees, rare and beautiful orchids, spectacular palms, minute fungi, wild coffees and an ancient aquatic plant are among more than 250 new plant and fungi species discovered and described by botanists from ...
'Invisible bracelet' for emergency health alerts?
Electronics / Consumer & Gadgets
Dec 21, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Emergency health alerts for the Facebook generation? The nation's ambulance crews are pushing a virtual medical ID system to rapidly learn a patient's health history during a crisis - and which can immediately text-message ...
Health Care bill clears key Senate test
Dec 21, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Landmark health care legislation backed by President Barack Obama passed its sternest Senate test in the pre-dawn hours early Monday, overcoming Republican delaying tactics on a 60-40 vote that all ...
Will a carrot or a stick prompt purchase of more carrots?
Dec 18, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Would a so-called Twinkie tax help curb obesity rates? Should shoppers who buy healthy goods earn rebates? A new study will seek to unravel the likely implications of legislative attempts to promote healthy ...
Scientists get to the root of ancient case of sour grapes
Dec 18, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists in Cambridge have discovered that a lowly grape variety grown by peasants - but despised by noblemen - during the Middle Ages was the mother of many of today’s greatest grape varieties, ...
Monument lifted from Cleopatra's underwater city
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Dec 17, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Archaeologists on Thursday hoisted a 9-ton temple pylon from the waters of the Mediterranean that was part of the palace complex of the fabled Cleopatra before it became submerged for centuries in ...
Antidepressants cut risk of hospital readmission for suicidal youth
Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry
Dec 17, 2009 |
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Suicidal adolescents who were prescribed an antidepressant medication during inpatient psychiatric hospital treatment were 85 percent less likely than others to be readmitted within a month after discharge, a new study found.
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