Suicide

Suicide is not being adequately addressed in terms of prevention, and part of that process is better education of mental health professionals and primary care physicians. More in this expert Q&A.

Maltreatment at an early age casts a very long shadow. Here: a look at the long-term effects of early childhood trauma.

A brief review of interesting new findings on suicidality and depression treatment in youths.

While we still have our good mornings-whether in Vietnam or elsewhere-we must forever say good night to Robin Williams and to thank him for all the good times.

Suicide is a pervasive public health issue for adolescents in Hawaii. In response, a youth leadership model was initiated to empower young leaders in suicide prevention through evidence-based training, relationship building, and community awareness.

Minorities remain less likely to receive diagnosis and treatment for their mental illness and more likely to die by suicide. As ethnocultural diversity within the US grows, psychiatrists are increasingly evaluating attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of a broad spectrum of ethnocultural groups.

Mood disorders in older adults are neither inevitable nor particularly resistant to treatment. With attention to the special needs of older patients during evaluation, treatment, and follow up, clinicians can help many patients derive greater enjoyment from their later years.

Clinicians will be drawn in by author Charles R. Cross's personal experience documenting, Here We Are Now: The Lasting Impact of Kurt Cobain. Cobain, lead singer of Nirvana, committed suicide 20 years ago this month.

This video features a particularly poignant section of a Q&A between National Council for Behavioral Health President and CEO Linda Rosenberg and NatCon 2014 Keynote Speaker Hillary Rodham Clinton, on suicide.

Substance abuse and addiction are commonly associated with an increased risk of suicide. Alcohol abuse plays a key role in suicide attempts and completions; prescription drugs are a close second. The causes of suicide for men and women are different but the suicide rates are equally staggering.

"Depression is overwhelming and overpowering, and it crushes its prey." Here: a pediatrician tells of her 40-year battle with severe depression, and offers insights about how to talk with someone who is depressed.

The ethical status of suicide is not a question psychiatrists can ignore. After all, our duty to preserve and protect life is founded on moral values, even if they are so deeply embedded in our medical ethos that we no longer sense their moral underpinnings.

Information from studies on adolescents with psychosis and a review of the evidence about the risk of suicide and suicidal behavior in this patient population.

Most New Yorkers were afraid to venture outdoors after the Twin Towers toppled, so a short term, part-time locums post opened upstate, an escape from the decaying metropolis and retreat to the country. What could go wrong in such an idyllic setting?

Learning to talk openly with patients about their suicidal ruminations poses more of an emotional than intellectual challenge.

It is hard for mental health professionals to discuss completed suicides. Legal fears, confidentiality concerns, shame, and stigma are formidable obstacles. But talk we must, for talking-and listening-is a key to prevention and treatment.

Lack of communication is often a key factor in mass murder, according Phillip Resnick, MD. Although HIPAA is important, the safety of the individual and the public should outweigh privacy issues, and “risk to human life always trumps confidentiality.”

Some attorneys have argued that SSRIs cause serious adverse events, capable of compelling defendants to engage in strikingly complex criminal behavior. On close examination, however, these phenomena may be clearly distinguished from criminal behavior.

Most people look forward to their morning jolt from coffee, but could that cup of Joe be doing more than keeping us alert? According to researchers from Harvard University, java may indeed have another benefit-that of reducing suicide risk.

Inpatient suicides are viewed as the most avoidable and preventable because they occur in close proximity to staff. Included here are factors that may guide the clinician in treating these at-risk patients.

Approximately what percentage of adults have made a serious suicide attempt?

Both the American Psychiatric Association and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry have identified substance abuse as a top risk factor for suicide in youths.

Adolescents with psychopathology who also experience psychotic symptoms have a nearly 70-fold increased odds of acute suicide attempts, according to new research.

A therapeutic alliance can serve to build a trusting relationship between clinician and patient and increase the patient’s feelings of agency and autonomy.

When our jails become our largest public mental health facilities, we definitely have a problem-a problem we created-in how we respond to serious mental illness.

The rise in suicides and lethal overdoses of opioid analgesics is probably not coincidental. In most overdose deaths, we have no way of knowing with any degree of certainty whether they were accidental deaths or intentional suicides.

PTSD is a psychiatric illness resulting from a physical or psychological trauma that is sometimes related to warfare, but of course occurs in the case of civilian trauma as well. However, wars have been a propitious time for studying PTSD.

According to the CDC's latest published report, there were 38,364 suicides in the US in 2010-an average of 105 each day. Globally, an estimated 1 million suicides occur annually.

Patients with major depression or bipolar depression have a 20- to 26-fold increase of mortality rate over the general population. Suicidal behavior can be quite complex as well deadly. It should go without saying that psychotherapy is usually necessary in treating patients who have suicidal ideation or who have demonstrated such tendencies or actions. Frequently, it may be combined with medication and sometimes it is the treatment of choice without medication.

What are the options for treating major depressive disorder in children and adolescents? This case offers readers a chance to give their feedback and to interact with the authors, who will present teaching points based on your comments.