[Maru]

Source:
https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/07/healt...cdc/index.html

US suicide rates increased more than 25% since 1999, CDC says

(CNN) — Suicide rates increased by 25% across the United States over nearly two decades ending in 2016, according to research published Thursday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Twenty-five states experienced a rise in suicides by more than 30%, the government report finds.

More than half of those who died by suicide had not been diagnosed with a mental health condition, said Dr. Anne Schuchat, principal deputy director of the CDC.

"These findings are disturbing. Suicide is one of the top 10 causes of death in the US right now, and it's one of three causes that is actually increasing recently, so we do consider it a public health problem -- and something that is all around us," Schuchat said. The other two top 10 causes of death that are on the rise are Alzheimer's disease and drug overdoses, she noted.

In 2016 alone, about 45,000 lives were lost to suicide.
"Our data show that the problem is getting worse," Schuchat said.

Increases in 49 states

Using data from the National Vital Statistics System for 50 states and the District of Columbia, CDC researchers analyzed suicide rates for people 10 and older from 1999 through 2016.

Overall, the US experienced a 25% rise in the rate of suicides during that period, with individual states ranging from a 6% increase in Delaware to a nearly 58% increase in North Dakota, the researchers say.

**check page for chart, etc**

All states except Nevada experienced an increase; although Nevada showed a 1% decrease in suicide, the state's suicide rate was still high, ranging between 21 and 23 suicides for every 100,000 people through the years studied, the researchers say.
Suicide rates were four times greater in the highest state compared with the lowest when calculated on an annual basis during the most recent time period, 2014 to 2016.

Montana experienced about 29 suicides for every 100,000 people -- the highest in the nation -- compared with about seven people out of every 100,000 in the District of Columbia -- the lowest. As a whole, the nation saw 15 people dying by suicide for every 100,000 in 2016.

"The most common method was firearm, followed by hanging or suffocation, followed by poisoning," Schuchat said. "Opioids were present in 31% of individuals who died by poisoning." She added that intentionality is difficult to determine in cases in which a person dies by overdose.

Deborah Stone, lead author of the study and a behavioral scientist at the CDC, said Thursday, "We typically see that firearms make up about half of all suicides, and that tends to be pretty consistent."

Schuchat noted that the researchers "focused in on 27 states where we have extensive data from the death investigations to try to understand the factors or circumstances leading up to suicide."

These data, derived from the National Violent Death Reporting System, showed that 54% of those who committed suicide in 2015 did not have a known mental health condition. Digging deeper, the researchers found that several circumstances, including the loss of (or problems in) a relationship, were more likely to trigger a suicide among those who did not have a mental health condition.

Regions and demographic groups were also compared.
Economic factors behind suicide

The Western area trend of high increases in suicide rates could be related to the fact that people in rural areas have less access to services as they more slowly benefit from the economic recovery than other parts of the nation, she said.

Asking for help

The suicide rate in the United States has seen sharp increases in recent years. Studies have shown that the risk of suicide declines sharply when people call the national suicide hotline: 1-800-273-TALK.

There is also a crisis text line. For crisis support in Spanish, call 1-888-628-9454.
The lines are staffed by a mix of paid professionals and unpaid volunteers trained in crisis and suicide intervention. The confidential environment, the 24-hour accessibility, a caller's ability to hang up at any time and the person-centered care have helped its success, advocates say.

The International Association for Suicide Prevention and Befrienders Worldwide also provide contact information for crisis centers around the world.
"We don't have all the answers. There may be several, but we knew that economic factors can increase the risk of suicide and that limited access to care, behavioral and social services may also increase the risk of suicide," Schuchat said.

Recent government reports have highlighted rising rates of suicide among women. "The percent increase was higher in women, but it's important to say that men have a three to five times higher rate than women," Schuchat said. The rising suicide rate for women, then, is "increasing but at a much, much lower level" than for men.
Veterans are also "overrepresented" in the report, she said.

"Veterans made up about 18% of adult suicides but represent about 8.5% of the US adult population," Schuchat said, noting that not all veterans who died by suicide were recent veterans. Still, the researchers found a 10% higher risk of suicide among people who had served in the military.

Middle-age adults had the highest increase.

"This is a very important population right now in terms of national statistics," Schuchat said, noting the high rates of drug overdose in this group as well as "deaths of despair" described in social science literature. She believes this group may have been hardest-hit by the economic downturn, but she added that unknown factors probably contributed.
Related Article: A 'wake-up call' about what's killing America's young people

"We think a key message is, there's not just one group; many are at risk," Schuchat said.
Whether or not they had a mental health condition, most people who died by suicide had experienced "one or more factors that may have contributed, including a relationship problem, a crisis in the recent couple weeks and problematic substance abuse," she said.

'Alarming'

K. Bryant Smalley, a professor of community medicine and psychiatry at the Mercer University School of Medicine, described the mental health care challenges experienced by patients in rural areas as the "three A's": availability, accessibility and acceptability of care.

Smalley, who was not involved in the new research, pointed out that about 85% of federally designated mental health professional shortage areas are rural.

"Due to higher poverty rates, higher likelihood of hourly pay and productivity-based labor, and lack of transportation infrastructure, mental health services are often not accessible even if they are available in a rural community -- that is, even though it is there, many people either cannot get to it or cannot afford (either directly or indirectly) to go," he said.

Add to that, rural areas have very high levels of stigma surrounding mental health services. "Rural residents face lower levels of anonymity in seeking services due to the close-knit nature of rural communities," Smalley said. The possibility of "someone seeing your car parked at the only psychologist's office" means rural residents are less likely to seek care when needed.

Dr. Sandro Galea, dean and Robert A. Knox Professor at the Boston University School of Public Health, said the National Vital Statistics System is the "best system we have of keeping records in the country." Galea, who was not involved in the new study, added that for this reason, the new research should be taken "very seriously."

"There have been previous reports recently that have shown suicide is one of the major contributors to a decrease in life expectancy in this country, which makes it even more alarming," he said.

Related Article: Missing CDC worker's death was a suicide by drowning, medical examiner rules

"The paper makes a clear case, correctly, about the fact that there is no one cause for suicide," he said, adding that "availability of means" makes death possible.

"A lot of suicide is a one-time effort, so having guns available, for example, makes one more likely to complete suicide, but that in and of itself is not an explanation for why suicide is going up," Galea said.

"CDC data shows that suicide happens to everybody," he said. "Social and life and economic stressors are the ones that create the conditions for suicides to happen."

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See the latest news and share your comments with CNN Health on Facebook and Twitter.
If you feel extreme distress, you can call 1-800-273-8255, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, to speak with someone who will provide free and confidential support 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you want to learn how to help someone in crisis, you can call the same number.

The CDC also recommends its own policies, programs and practices for prevention.
Shuchat said there are simple steps anyone can take to help someone at risk. "Beginning a conversation, helping keep them safe, helping them connect and then follow up with them," she said. "We don't think every single suicide can be prevented, but many are preventable."

[Toy Soldier]

I do like how people make out increasing suicide rates can be solved by "taking measures", "increasing support" etc...

Suicide rates are increasing because the western world is in the midst of an existential catastrophe that is only going to get steadily worse. Bleak, but that's the situation.

[arista]

Yes its gone up.
Watched it on CNN HD
today.
No one can stop some folks

[Maru]

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

I do like how people make out increasing suicide rates can be solved by "taking measures", "increasing support" etc...

Suicide rates are increasing because the western world is in the midst of an existential catastrophe that is only going to get steadily worse. Bleak, but that's the situation.

Can you be more specific?

[Toy Soldier]

Originally Posted by Maru

Can you be more specific?

Well not to get too down on things but... the youth of today are cast adrift into a declining, indifferent, vapid and jaded world and then laughed at or told to get over it - or even to be grateful - when they complain that it leaves them feeling existentially hollow.

[Twosugars]

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

I do like how people make out increasing suicide rates can be solved by "taking measures", "increasing support" etc...

Suicide rates are increasing because the western world is in the midst of an existential catastrophe that is only going to get steadily worse. Bleak, but that's the situation.

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

Well not to get too down on things but... the youth of today are cast adrift into a declining, indifferent, vapid and jaded world and then laughed at or told to get over it - or even to be grateful - when they complain that it leaves them feeling existentially hollow.

Well said
Things are getting worse

[Maru]

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

Well not to get too down on things but... the youth of today are cast adrift into a declining, indifferent, vapid and jaded world and then laughed at or told to get over it - or even to be grateful - when they complain that it leaves them feeling existentially hollow.

Thanks TS. I was on mobile, so sorry if that sounded a bit "curt" (also adding a smiley seemed to make it worse...)

I don't think the bold will ever change. That's basic parenting... "get on it with, child". I think though, if we push them into the current scheme of things... it's not exactly a great "alternative". Something is missing about society and I think we've missed something when we modernized from history... anyway, just my opinion, but even my generation and my own anecdotal nonsensical-ness... there does appear to be a nihilistic shift, even moreso from some of the kids growing up during my time... and I noticed in the US particularly, the south seemed to be a little "behind" this curb... when I moved to the Northeast, and when I met with folk at that distance when still living in TX growing up, there were sooo many kids and peers with mental issues... and you know, I've been told to get past it, young lady. That for me is not necessarily a bad thing... we do we need to get over ourselves a bit... we are a little bit too full of ourselves at times, and it by counteracting that, I think we can avoid forming serious neurosis... the latter, many of these peers had been coddled, given terribly vague advice... whereas in the south, there is no filter... a lot of those sayings come with knowledge that's passed down generation to generation, not just an empty "Get to work, young'un"...

I think to "pin" down this shift without so many words, I would say more of those "sayings" are regurgitated by older folk rather than understanding what they actually mean... versus life experience that is genuinely passed down from older generation to younger... and there's definitely an increasing divide between our generations... like older folk are not as close to younger folk as it used to be... I think this absolutely effects people's sense of maturity later on, as well as having that sense of emotional support from older folk, and other generations (including ancestors)... after all, we used to take care of our old... now it feels like we are disgarding the knowledges of those generations, because they're "running against the grain" politically and culturally speaking... and we are throwing away some great opportunities I think to learn from folk who have walked more than a few miles in our own shoes... I think that sort of mutual respect is missing, absolutely... I don't have that issue myself with my background with care-taking, but I truly think that disregarding their perspective, because we "know better"... those are missed opportunities to learn the things in life to support ourselves that can't be learned just by silly tropes and common catch phrases... we lose a lot of social experience too when we don't force ourselves to encounter with the generational divide... i.e. it's also really hard to know really when contrasting ideas might actually be beneficial to us in certain cases without those clashes... or even when we may need simple basic life advice from a more experienced peer... and so I think young people shoot themselves in the foot trying to do everything alone. Anyway, I love our older generation(s)... those folk won't be around forever, so I think take advantage of those connections before they are gone for good...

[Ammi]

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

I do like how people make out increasing suicide rates can be solved by "taking measures", "increasing support" etc...

Suicide rates are increasing because the western world is in the midst of an existential catastrophe that is only going to get steadily worse. Bleak, but that's the situation.

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

Well not to get too down on things but... the youth of today are cast adrift into a declining, indifferent, vapid and jaded world and then laughed at or told to get over it - or even to be grateful - when they complain that it leaves them feeling existentially hollow.

...I don’t really want to agree with you TS...because yeah that does all seem a bit bleak and down...but sadly I have to agree, though...I’m not sure the western world is in the midst of an existential catastrophe though...that does feel a little ‘dramatic’...but I do think in some areas it feels quite regressive..or hindering of progression, if you like...it’s quite ironic really of our progressive modern day world...that we have ‘so many answers’...so much understanding and awareness etc in terms of mental health issues ...but that’s all kind of a bit pointless if what we don’t have is the funding to implement these things...it’s always been a fight and a struggle to get the help needed with mental health issues in very young people..but now no matter how hard the fight and no matter how strenuous the struggle...it’s sadly becoming an impossibility for the many......I fear it’s becoming or has become a little bit of a disclaimer world in which we live...in that if a mental health issue is diagnosed, then there would be an obligation to address in the funding given to the help that’s needed...so let’s just not diagnose in the first place...oh it’s just a phase that child../..young person is going through or whatever...I’ve actually been given that exact phrase myself when referring to a young person with multiple attempted suicides......


...’back in the not so distant day’, things like post natal depression wouldn’t have even been recognised or understood as we know....so we have all of this ‘understanding’ through time of so many mental health issues and illnesses...only to be told...sorry, it’s all too expensive...just pull yourself together, baby...life could be worse don’t you know...


...I mean crikey, you’ve got a phone and an iPad, don’t you know...what on Earth are you moaning about, life has never been so good or free of anxieties....etc, etc...

[Ammi]

...actually it isn’t just about funding though, that's just a particularly frustrating bit of ‘progression’...sadly there can still be a degree of stigma associated with mental health issues..so maybe a reluctance for some who are struggling...to express openly how they’re feeling with feelings of hopelessness..?...

[Toy Soldier]

The reason I call it a catastrophe is that what we actually see is the tip of a massive iceberg... The vast majority of people who are in the opening stages of anxiety and depression have told very few people about it (if anyone), put on their game face every day so that it's not publicly visible, and certainly haven't sought any sort of help in order for it to be included in the official stats. Tbqfh I think if everyone who is internally suffering on a daily basis WAS to seek help... Mental health services would collapse over night under the strain. It's that bad. It's so bad in fact that I think we're probably on the verge of simply considering daily anxiety to be a "normal part of being human", which is just incredibly sad.

[Maru]

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

The reason I call it a catastrophe is that what we actually see is the tip of a massive iceberg... The vast majority of people who are in the opening stages of anxiety and depression have told very few people about it (if anyone), put on their game face every day so that it's not publicly visible, and certainly haven't sought any sort of help in order for it to be included in the official stats. Tbqfh I think if everyone who is internally suffering on a daily basis WAS to seek help... Mental health services would collapse over night under the strain. It's that bad. It's so bad in fact that I think we're probably on the verge of simply considering daily anxiety to be a "normal part of being human", which is just incredibly sad.

I don't think we're that far gone, at least where I am, I personally feel. But, I think that a lot of stressors and red flags are going underneath the radar... my feeling though, when it becomes too prominent, especially this youngest generation, they will start to push back... there is a point our drive to survive kicks in... but I do believe, absolutely, many of the current mantras that are pervasive in our society (again, where I am), they are counter-intuitive, especially the expectations there that are not at all realistic and at worst, overly idealistic... all it takes is a few to throw up their hands and say enough.. so I tend to think it is an awareness problem, especially self-awareness... we have an amazing capacity to survive, but right now ppl have their heads in the cloud... no it is not normal we are depressed 24/7... time to push back. Or at least to reinvest our time and energy that actually pays well... I think the workforce, especially here, we are seeing more ppl going into business for themselves... yes it is difficult, but at least the time and energy is to their benefit... anyway.. too long to get into right now, but maybe will come flesh out my points out later...