Tag Archives: loneliness

How to Help a Suicidal Person (2)

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This is the second in a series of articles on dealing with an emergency involving a highly suicidal person. In How to Help a Suicidal Person (1) we covered issues such as not leaving the potentially suicidal person alone, what to say to the person, and the avoidance of physical contact when dealing with a highly disturbed or threatening person. This blog covered issues 1 through 3. Today we look at further coping techniques beginning with: 4. Seek immediate help. Without leaving the person alone (see 2), phone the Mental Health crisis number in your area. If you do not … Continue reading →

How to Help a Suicidal Person (1)

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What would you do if you suddenly encountered a friend, family member, or even a complete stranger who was showing strong signs of imminent suicide? Few of us are taught what to do in a situation such as this, so let’s look some ways to deal with this extremely difficult situation. 1. Do not get involved physically if the person is highly distressed and/or threatening. In this situation, talking is the best option The longer you can keep the person talking, even if it is only you who is doing the talking, the longer you will delay any dire action … Continue reading →

Are You Lonesome Tonight?

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The relationship between loneliness and mental health is a well established one. In fact, the relationship between loneliness and health issues of many persuasions has been well documented by numerous researchers. We humans are a species that prefers to congregate in groups because it’s good for our mental health. This was very apparent in the case of one of my clients, Sally. Sally had successfully beaten a long-standing case of depression and had gone back to college, changed her career and embarked on a new job. The latter necessitated a move to another neighborhood and it was just months after … Continue reading →

Confession: Halle Berry

You’d think I would know better. After all, I spent 14 years as a television news reporter working under seven news directors who were all about ratings, ratings, ratings. Why then did I allow myself to get bamboozled? A couple of weeks ago I outlined a blog about Academy Award-winning actress Halle Berry’s suicide attempt. Having read about it in Parade (you know the insert distributed in traditional newspapers) I figured it was legit. It turns out the information was accurate, but about 10 years old. So here I was set to write a blog about Berry’s confession and her … Continue reading →

Whispers from Yesterday – Robin Lee Hatcher

Karen Butler has a past that won’t leave her alone. Her father was convicted of stealing large quantities of money from his company, and solved the problem by taking his own life. Now Karen feels alone, abandoned, unloved, and betrayed, and feels that she should take her own life as well. Isn’t that how it’s done? But when an attempt to slit her wrists fails, she’s taken in by Mac, her father’s good friend and lawyer, and he helps her mend and recover. But now Karen has nowhere to go. She’s penniless and alone. Her only living relative now is … Continue reading →

Speaking Ill of the Dead

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When I wrote my two recent blogs on suicide expressing my sadness that there are people who still believe that those who commit suicide are selfish, I waited for more of the same. I did not have to wait long. It was initially heartwarming to see that there were two very intelligent and compassionate comments on the dilemma of suicide. You can read them here. Unfortunately, the next comment on this blog reiterates the ignorance surrounding the issue of suicide. This is what this person wrote, and I quote: I do think it’s selfish. People don’t commit suicide because the … Continue reading →

Suicide: My Thoughts on One Case

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In Suicide: What Do You Think about It? I talked about the varied reactions of people to the phenomenon of suicide. Today I want to talk about a recent example of a typical reaction to suicide, one that I experienced just prior to Christmas, that season of love, family, and pronounced spikes in the annual rate of suicide. The woman in question who took her own life left no note, so the family had no concrete explanation for why she decided to take her own life. Naturally they were upset. I did not know the woman involved but I knew … Continue reading →

Suicide: What Do You Think about It?

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Since we have just passed through Christmas, the highest suicide period of the year, I thought it was time to address this taboo, yet all-too-common, topic. What do you think about people who commit suicide? This is an interesting question and one that produces a variety of responses. Some people go through their entire lives untouched by the specter of suicide; others have been exposed to it through the deaths of friends or family members. Others still have attempted suicide and have lived to tell the tale. And then there are those who think about it, yet do not take … Continue reading →

What would make a child depressed?

Children can suffer from depression just as adults can. But while mental health groups around the country struggle to increase awareness of the widespread nature of depression in adults, the equivalent illness in children is often very much swept under the carpet. One of the reasons why this occurs is that adults have an entrenched perception that children are very resilient. While this is generally true, and children do seem to bounce back after a distressing episode much more quickly than the majority of adults do, there is a limit to a child’s personal coping skills. Adults also seem to … Continue reading →

Christmas and other traumas

Over the last couple of weeks, I have heard an increasing number of people, mainly women, expressing grief and sadness about the approaching festive season. And only some of them are my clients! The majority by far are just ordinary people: neighbors, friends, acquaintances, shopkeepers. They comment that they are dreading the “Silly Season.” Yet it’s not just because of the shopping madness and parking mayhem and the financial burden of buying the right gift. It’s a deep-seated sadness about family. Granted some of these people have lost loved ones during the year, and for them, this Christmas will be … Continue reading →