Post Traumatic Stress Disorder / Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome

If you are thinking about...

Suicide...Read this first - click HERE
Or use Phone Number and Link Below

 What can I do? I am suicidal!
Everyone feels down occasionally. Feeling suicidal, however, is not normal.

If you have thoughts about hurting yourself, it is important to seek professional help. Many people who experience suicidal thoughts also struggle with a mood disorder or substance abuse problem. If you think you may have one of these conditions, there are many places to seek help. For conditions such as PTSD, depression, or substance abuse, helpful treatments include medication from a primary care physician or psychiatrist, and/or therapy from a mental health provider such as a psychologist. To locate a mental health provider near you, call your doctor's office or ask a friend for a recommendation. The following link may also be helpful way to locate a mental health professional http://www.mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/databases/. If you work for a large company or organization, call the human resources office to find out if they provide mental-health services or make referrals.

If you are ever considering suicide and feel unsafe, you may call the following hotline (available 24 hours a day) to speak with someone who can help: 800-SUICIDE or 800-784-2433

If you do not struggle with a psychiatric illness, you may need to learn additional coping strategies for high levels of stress. There are many therapeutic treatments that could be helpful in this situation. Consider using one of the methods mentioned above to locate a mental health professional near you.

Someone I know is suicidal...

It is likely that sometime during your life you will be exposed to a family member, peer, or co-worker who is feeling suicidal. When someone discloses information about feeling suicidal, the information can feel overwhelming, anxiety-provoking, and frightening. This is particularly true if the disclosure is made in confidence and you feel pressure not to share the information with others. If someone you know is thinking about suicide, the issue should be taken very seriously. Individuals who contemplate suicide may not necessarily take action, but evaluating the risk can be complicated and should be done by a qualified mental health professional.

Helping a suicidal individual can be a difficult process. The person’s age will influence your first course of action. If your acquaintance is an adult, try to be supportive and listen to his/her concerns. Next, encourage him/her to seek treatment immediately. Help the person with this process by remaining calm and providing information about mental health options in the area. Call 800-SUICIDE or 800-784-2433 or visit http://www.mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/databases/ to obtain referral information. Often the most difficult part of obtaining treatment is the initial call to a mental health professional. It is usually easier for a suicidal individual to accept professional help if they have assistance with this part of the process. The decision to seek treatment is typically voluntary for adults. Their ability to maintain safety will determine the treatment options. Options include outpatient therapy, medication management, and/or inpatient treatment. Inpatient hospital visits are typically only prescribed when an individual is no longer safe without supervision. Sometimes involuntary hospital admission is necessary. However, because of federal laws protecting adult civil rights, this course of action in uncommon. Involuntary admission only occurs when an individual demonstrates unsafe behavior. If you feel that your acquaintance may hurt him/herself or others, contact your local police department for assistance.

If the person with suicidal thoughts is a minor (under the age of 18), it is important to contact the minor’s parent or legal guardian. If the caregiver is unwilling or unable to take action, contact a mental health professional or law enforcement agent for assistance. The law states that individuals under the age of 18 are not able to make mental health treatment decisions. Therefore, it is important that responsible adults see that they receive the appropriate services. Treatment options for children and adolescents are similar to those outlined for adults. Unlike adults, however, minors may receive inpatient hospitalization without their consent if it is deemed necessary by their parents or the legal system.

While helping a suicidal person can be a difficult process, remember that the assistance you provide could save someone’s life.

Someone I know has committed suicide

It is always difficult to cope when an acquaintance commits suicide. Overcoming the suicide will be particularly challenging if you were emotionally close to the victim, if you witnessed the event, or if you have a prior history of psychiatric illness. Additional factors that complicate the grieving process include: low socioeconomic status and low social support.Grieving the loss of a loved one is a natural process. It may take several months to feel “normal” again after your acquaintance commits suicide. Due to the traumatic nature of suicide, you may experience traumatic grief as part of the healing process. If you experience pronounced levels of grief several months after the suicide, contact a mental health professional for assistance. Lastly, many people experience intense guilt following the suicide of an acquaintance. This feeling is often related to thoughts about being unable to prevent the suicide. Suicide is never your fault. It is a complicated and difficult phenomenon to understand with many contributing factors. To gain a better understanding of suicide or the grieving process, consider finding a mental health provider at the following link: http://www.mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/databases/.

Reasons for suicide

Individuals who have lost someone to suicide often question why that person chose to end his/her life. Unfortunately, there is no easy answer to this question. Suicide often appears to be related to environmental stresses or traumatic events, but it is also the case that some individuals commit suicide without any identifiable reason. Though there is always devastation and confusion associated with suicide, available research provides some clues about common reasons for suicide.

Specific reasons for suicide are as diverse as the individuals who commit it. Nevertheless, there are some common causal factors that appear to be related to suicide. For example, more than 90% of suicide victims have a significant psychiatric illness at the time of their death. These illnesses are often both undiagnosed and untreated. The two most common psychiatric conditions associated with suicide are mood disorders and substance abuse. When an individual has both a mood disorder and a substance abuse issue, the risk of suicide is much higher. This is especially the case for adolescents and young adults. This research suggests that the presence of mental illness is a primary contributor to the cause of suicide. For individuals who suffer from clinical depression specifically, of utmost concern are those who exhibit open aggression, anxiety, or agitation, as these factors significantly increase the risk of suicide.

Some researchers suggest that suicide can be understood as a form of coping mechanism for individuals who feel overwhelmed and trapped by their situation. For these people, suicide is seen as a way of dealing with extremely strong negative emotions through escape. This conceptualization of suicide is exemplified by the relation between suicide rates and media coverage, particularly in the young. Research reveals that the magnitude of increase in suicides following a suicide story is proportional to the amount, duration, and prominence of media coverage. These data suggest that suicide is more likely to occur when it is no longer perceived as “taboo,” and instead is seen as a viable coping alternative to stress. This hypothesis of suicide as a coping alternative is further supported by evidence that a family history of suicide greatly increases an individual’s suicide risk regardless of the presence of mental illness.

When trying to understand suicide, some helpful questions to consider are:

• Did the individual ever receive treatment for depression or another mental disorder?
• Did the individual have a problem with substance abuse?
• Did the individual have a history of suicide attempts?
• Did the individual have a family history of suicide attempts?

Does PTSD increase an individual’s suicide risk?

A large body of research indicates that there is a correlation between PTSD and suicide. There is evidence that traumatic events such as sexual abuse, combat trauma, rape, and domestic violence generally increase a person’s suicide risk. Considerable debate exists, however, about the reason for this increase. Whereas some studies suggest that suicide risk is higher due to the symptoms of PTSD, others claim that suicide risk is higher in these individuals because of related psychiatric conditions. Some studies that point to PTSD as the cause of suicide suggest that high levels of intrusive memories can predict the relative risk of suicide. High levels of arousal symptoms and low levels of avoidance have also been shown to predict suicide risk. In contrast, other researchers have found that conditions that co-occur with PTSD, such as depression, may be more predictive of suicide. Further, some cognitive styles of coping such as using suppression to deal with stress may be additionally predictive of suicide risk in individuals with PTSD.

Some of the most common factors are

• male gender
• alcohol abuse
• family history of suicide
• older age
• poor social-environment support (exemplified by homelessness and unmarried status)
• possession of firearms
• the presence of medical and psychiatric conditions (including PTSD) associated with suicide
* BY : A National Center for PTSD Fact Sheet: by William Hudenko, Ph.D.

   Symptoms