Suicide is the eleventh most common cause of death in the United States. People may consider suicide when they are hopeless and can't see any other solution to their problems. Often it's related to serious depression, alcohol or substance abuse, or a major stressful event.
People who have the highest risk of suicide are white men, though women and teens report more suicide attempts. If someone talks about suicide, you should take it seriously. Urge them to get help from their doctor or the emergency room, or call 911.
Therapy and medicines can help most people who have suicidal thoughts. Treating mental illnesses and substance abuse can reduce the risk of suicide.
National Institute of Mental Health
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JAMA Patient Page: Suicide(American Medical Association) - http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/reprint/293/20/2558.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/data/293/20/2558/DC1/1
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Suicide in the U.S.: Statistics and Prevention
(National Institute of Mental Health) - http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/suicide-in-the-us-statistics-and-prevention.shtml
- Suicide(Mental Health America) - http://www.nmha.org/go/information/get-info/suicide
- Antipsychotic Drug Reduces Suicidal Thoughts(09/08/2008, Reuters Health) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_69007.html
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Preventing Suicide(09/07/2008, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/Features/PreventingSuicide/
- Doctors Could Play a Part in Preventing Suicides(09/03/2008, HealthDay) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_68874.html
- Youth Suicides Continue to Rise in U.S.(09/02/2008, HealthDay) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_68819.html
- Veterans Suicide Prevention Hotline (1-800-273-TALK) Provides Vital Help to More Than 55,000 Callers in Its First Year(07/28/2008, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://www.samhsa.gov/newsroom/advisories/0807254324.aspx
- More News on Suicide http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/alphanews_s.html#suicide
- Men and Women Veterans: Know the Warning Signs of Suicide(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information) - Links to PDF - http://download.ncadi.samhsa.gov/ken/pdf/VA07-SPBRO.pdf
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Suicide Warning Signs(Center for Mental Health Services) - http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/publications/allpubs/walletcard/engwalletcard.asp
Also available in Spanish http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/publications/allpubs/walletcard/spwalletcard.asp
- Suicide: What to Do When Someone Is Suicidal(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/suicide/MH00058/METHOD=print
- "Lonely? Trapped? Hopeless? Alone? When It Seems Like There Is No Hope, There Is Help."(Center for Mental Health Services) - http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/publications/allpubs/SVP-0141/
- College Students and Suicide(Education Development Center, Inc.) - http://www.sprc.org/featured_resources/customized/college_student.asp
- National Suicide Prevention Lifeline(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/
- Role of Co-Workers in Preventing Suicide(Education Development Center, Inc.) - http://www.sprc.org/featured_resources/customized/co_workers.asp
- Suicide Prevention and Mood Disorders: Understanding Suicidal Thinking(Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance) - http://www.dbsalliance.org/site/PageServer?pagename=about_publications_suicideprev
- What Employers Can Do to Prevent Suicide(Education Development Center, Inc.) - http://www.sprc.org/featured_resources/customized/employer.asp
- Considering Suicide? How to Stay Safe and Find Treatment(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/suicide/MH00054/METHOD=print
- Survivors of Suicide Fact Sheet(American Association of Suicidology) - Links to PDF - http://www.suicidology.org/associations/1045/files/SurvivorsFactSheet.pdf
- Survivors of Suicide: Healing After a Loved One's Suicide(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/suicide/MH00048/METHOD=print
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National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: After an Attempt. A Guide for Taking Care of Your Family Member(NAMI, Center for Mental Health Services) - Large PDF file - http://download.ncadi.samhsa.gov/ken/pdf/SVP-0159/SVP-0159.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://www.nami.org/Content/ContentGroups/Policy/Issues_Spotlights/family_guide_sp.pdf
- PTSD and Suicide(National Center for PTSD, Dept. of Veterans Affairs) - http://ncptsd.va.gov/ncmain/ncdocs/fact_shts/fs_suicide.html
- Responding to a Suicide Emergency(American College of Emergency Physicians) - http://www3.acep.org/patients.aspx?id=25954
- Suicide and Depression(Suicide Awareness Voices of Education) - http://www.save.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPage&page_id=705C8CB8-9321-F1BD-867E811B1B404C94
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Suicide: Taking Care of Yourself After an Attempt(NAMI, Center for Mental Health Services) - Large PDF file - http://download.ncadi.samhsa.gov/ken/pdf/SVP-0157/SVP-0157.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://www.nami.org/Content/ContentGroups/Policy/Issues_Spotlights/consumer_guide_sp.pdf
- Understanding Suicidal Thinking(Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance) - Large PDF file - http://www.dbsalliance.org/pdfs/suicidefinalweb04.pdf
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Suicide(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Suicide%22
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
- Article: Guns and suicide in the United States. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18768940&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Suicide fad threatens neighbours, rescuers. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18695173&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Reported visual impairment and risk of suicide: the 1986-1996 national... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18625946&tool=MedlinePlus
- Suicide -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=(suicide[Majr]+NOT+(terrorism[majr]+OR+euthanasia[majr]+OR+assisted+suicide[MeSH]))+AND+english[la]+AND+(jsubsetk[text]+OR+patient+education+handout[pt]+OR+guideline[pt]+OR+clinical+trial[pt]+OR+jsubsetaim[text]+OR+jsubsetn[text])+NOT+(editorial[pt]+OR+letter[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- Assisted suicide -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=(suicide,+assisted[majr]+OR+euthanasia[majr]+NOT+euthanasia,animal[majr])+AND+english[la]+AND+humans[mh]+AND+(jsubsetaim[text]+OR+jsubsetn[text]+OR+jsubsete+OR+review[pt]+OR+guideline[pt]+OR+jsubsetk[text]+OR+patient+education+handout[pt]+OR+systematic[sb])+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt]+OR+news[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- Suicide Prevention Basics: Glossary(Education Development Center, Inc.) - http://www.sprc.org/suicide_prev_basics/glossary.asp
- Survivor Resources(Education Development Center, Inc.) - Links to PDF - http://www.sprc.org/library/survresources.pdf
- American Association of Suicidology - http://www.suicidology.org/
- American Psychiatric Association - http://www.psych.org/
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National Institute of Mental Health - http://www.nimh.nih.gov/
- Suicide Awareness Voices of Education - http://www.save.org/
- Surviving Suicide(American Association of Suicidology) - http://www.suicidology.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=29
- FASTATS: Self-Inflicted Injury/Suicide(National Center for Health Statistics) - http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/suicide.htm
- State Data Fact Sheets(Education Development Center, Inc.) - http://www.sprc.org/stateinformation/datasheets.asp
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Suicide among American Indians/Alaska Natives(Education Development Center, Inc.) - Links to PDF - http://www.sprc.org/library/ai.an.facts.pdf
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Suicide among Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders(Education Development Center, Inc.) - Links to PDF - http://www.sprc.org/library/asian.pi.facts.pdf
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Suicide among Black Americans(Education Development Center, Inc.) - Links to PDF - http://www.sprc.org/library/black.am.facts.pdf
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Suicide among Hispanic Americans(Education Development Center, Inc.) - Links to PDF - http://www.sprc.org/library/hispanic.am.facts.pdf
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Suicide Facts at a Glance(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - Links to PDF - http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/dvp/Suicide/SuicideDataSheet.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/factsheets/suicidio.htm
- Suicide in the U.S.A.(American Association of Suicidology) - Links to PDF - http://www.suicidology.org/associations/1045/files/SuicideInTheUS.pdf
- Youth Suicide(American Association of Suicidology) - Links to PDF - http://www.suicidology.org/associations/1045/files/YouthSuicide.pdf
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Antidepressant Medications for Children and Adolescents: Information for Parents and Caregivers(National Institute of Mental Health) - http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/child-and-adolescent-mental-health/antidepressant-medications-for-children-and-adolescents-information-for-parents-and-caregivers.shtml
- Antidepressants for Children: Explore the Pros and Cons(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/antidepressants/MH00059/METHOD=print
- Surviving Your Child's Suicide(Compassionate Friends) - http://www.compassionatefriends.org/Other_Pages/Surviving_Your_Child%E2%80%99s_Suicide.aspx
- What to Tell Children(Suicide Awareness Voices of Education) - http://www.save.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPage&page_id=A840AF80-D151-3DB2-340EBB93CC519E0F
- About Teen Suicide(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/parent/emotions/behavior/suicide.html
- My Friend Is Talking about Suicide(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/your_mind/problems/talking_about_suicide.html
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Suicide(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/your_mind/mental_health/suicide.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/mente/suicide_esp.html
- Young People and Suicide: Teen Suicide(Mental Health America) - http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/go/information/get-info/suicide/young-people-and-suicide-teen-suicide
- Elderly Suicide(American Association of Suicidology) - Links to PDF - http://www.suicidology.org/associations/1045/files/ElderlySuicide2002.pdf
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Older Adults: Depression and Suicide Facts(National Institute of Mental Health) - http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/older-adults-depression-and-suicide-facts.shtml
- Depression - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/depression.html
- Mental Health and Behavior - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/mentalhealthandbehavior.html
- Social/Family Issues - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/socialfamilyissues.html
The primary NIH organization for research on Suicide is the National Institute of Mental Health - http://www.nimh.nih.gov/
Suicide - Multiple Languages - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/languages/suicide.html