A Science-Based Look At Suicide

"Inadequately treated depression reaps us mercilessly. It’s the tenth leading cause of death in America.  The suicide rates have climbed steadily for decades. But there’s hope. There’s always hope. You can help your friends and loved ones find their way back to that hope. Talking with depressed people, offering them help and steadfast support, gently but firmly leading them to pursue and maintain treatment, and keeping in touch with them are all effective ways of reducing suicide risk. Depression lies, but you can be the one in somebody’s life who counters those lies with the truth.

Decent people can also help by not making things worse, and by avoiding cruel and thoughtless stereotypes. When you announce that people who have died by suicide are cowardly, you’re sending a message to depressed people fighting suicidal thoughts. The message isn’t one of perseverance. It’s one of worthlessness. When you say that the victims of suicide are cowards, you’re telling depressed people that they’re weak and contemptible for what they feel. You’re reinforcing the lies they’re already hearing in their head. You’re making it less likely, not more, that they’ll seek help, and you’re not facing responsibility for your actions."

A case can be made that the magical thinking of the religious as they address suicide is one of the most harmful and cruel effects of such.

Suicide is not an act of cowardice