Most cases of potential suicide have warning signs. Attempting to kill oneself, talking about or planning suicide, writing a suicide note, talking or thinking frequently about death, exhibiting a death wish by expressing it verbally or by taking potentially deadly risks, or taking steps towards attempting suicide are all indicators of a suicide crisis. More subtle clues include preparing for death for no apparent reason, writing goodbye letters, and visiting or calling family members or friends to say farewell. The person may also start giving away previously valued items. In other cases, the person who seemed depressed and suicidal may become normal or filled with energy or calmness again; these people particularly need to be watched because the return to normalcy could be because they have come to terms with whatever act is next. Depression is a major causative factor of suicide, and individuals suffering from depression are considered a high-risk group for suicidal behavior. However, suicidal behaviour is not just restricted to patients diagnosed with some form of depression. More than 90% of all suicides are related to a mood disorder, such as bipolar disorder, Depression, or other psychiatric illnesses, such as schizophrenia. The deeper the depression, the greater the risk, often manifested in feelings or expressions of apathy, helplessness, hopelessness, or worthlessness. Suicide is often committed in response to a cause of depression, such as the cessation of a romantic relationship, serious illness or injury, the death of a loved one, financial problems or poverty, guilt or fear of getting caught for something the person did, drug abuse, old age, concerns with gender identity, among others. In 2006, WHO conducted a study on suicide around the world. The results in Canada showed that 80-90% of attempts failed. 90% of failed suicides investigated led to hospitalizations. 12% of attempts were in hospitals.
Treatments
has been tested for treatment-resistant bipolar depression, major depressive disorder, and people in a suicidal crisis in emergency rooms, and is being used this way off-label. The drug is given by a single intravenous infusion at doses less than those used in anesthesia, and preliminary data have indicated it produces a rapid and relatively sustained significant reduction in symptoms in some patients. Initial studies with ketamine have sparked scientific and clinical interest due to its rapid onset, and because it appears to work by blocking NMDA receptors for glutamate, a different mechanism from most modern antidepressants that operate on other targets. Some studies have shown that lithium medication can reduce suicidal ideation within 48 hours of administration.
