Why This Alarming Rise In Calls On The Suicide Helpline?

Youth Depression
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What is leading to this increased suicidal thought and tendency in the state of Maharashtra? 

Connecting, a city-based NGO working for suicide prevention shared their observations and concerns with media yesterday. Apparently. the calls received on their helpline have doubled  to 8-10/ day and the majority are from the state of Maharashtra.

Their findings also suggest that the calls rise during the examination season and go on till the results are declared.

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Allied Triggers – Academic and Peer Related-
Depression and self-harming behaviour amongst school kids due to academic pressure. Rise in suicide and suicide attempt cases from school and especially college going students due to tension about exams and failure in academics.
Not getting admissions in desired educational field, not interested in the chosen field and imposition of a field on the students cause a lot of distress.
Bullying and ragging on college campuses also causing tremendous emotional distress amongst students which drives them to attempt suicide.

Dr. Ulhas Luktuke, a key member of the NGO and a psychiatrist says, “Low tolerance levels lead to the person going further into frustration and depression. The ability to not differentiate between what is important and what is not, leads them to something as deadly as suicide. The families of such people then blame themselves for the accident, thus making their lives worse. One thinks of having a particular kind of lifestyle, partner etc and not getting these leads people to negativity that grows within them.

“We can certainly change the thought process of  people who are driven to suicide. The positive approach and psychology suggest, we don’t lose hope and keep on living our lives.

“A person can adopt positive thinking and let go off all the negativity.

“At such times, we shouldn’t think of being alone, going away from family or friends, quitting jobs, or looking for reasons to end life; Instead, we should focus on making our life meaningful, with discretion and logic.

If we engage ourselves well, then such negative thoughts do not enter our mind.

Other Triggers : Emotional, Financial And Addiction Related-

Emotional distress on rise amongst out station students living alone as PG and in hostels.
Financial issues faced by college students also a major contributing factor.
Love relationship issues and failure in such relationships at a very early age is a major contributing factor for suicide attempts amongst teenagers.
Issues related to addictions to narcotics and alcoholism.
Issues concerning gender and sexuality. If the students identify amongst sexual minorities. Acceptance issues surrounding these surrounding these communities cause emotional distress.

“Psychotherapy is aimed at training and counselling the person. He should be trained towards rational thinking and should be provided with relevant understanding and encouragement. That would help him to overcome his depression and get back to his normal routine,” he adds.

Speaking on the various causes, suicidal patterns and prevention methods, Dr.Manish Bajpayee, Senior Psychiatrist suggests,

“The most common reason of stress and increased suicidal tendency between the age group of 15-25 is actually failed relationships.

“Even statistics show that problems in love affairs are a significant reason for the high numbers in cases of stress and depression.

Warning Signs / Look Out for:
Change in behaviour.
Giving up on favourite items.
Talking about death.
Writing depressing letters.
Increase consumption of narcotics and alcohol.

The common issues of not going to school, isolation and unfriendly behavior has been observed in kids.” Dr. Bajpayee also suggests that if a person confesses of such things, it is important not to ignore these signs.

“Try talking to them in detail, make him/her comfortable and always be around to keep a check on them and consult a specialist doctor at the earliest,” he adds.

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Loveleen Kaur