New insights into understanding suicidal people - DCU/HRB report

15 June 2010

The results of a unique research study into the experiences of suicidal young men were made public today.  The study was funded by the HRB and carried out by researchers  in DCU’s School of Nursing.

The study involved one-to-one interviews with 17 young men, mean age 25, who had experienced different levels of suicidality and who had varied experiences of the  mental health services.  Of  these 17 young men,  41% had made more than two suicide attempts, indicating chronic suicidality.

The aim of the study was to inform recommendations for the improvement of mental health services which would help inform health professionals, families and suicidal people themselves.

Suicide currently accounts for approximately 2% of all deaths in Ireland, with a particularly high rate of youth suicide in the 15-24 age group.

Professor Chris Stevenson who lead the research team, said, “Suicide accounts for approximately 2% of all deaths in Ireland and we have a particularly high rate of Youth Suicide, among the 15-34 age group. The young men we interviewed had varied socio-economic and educational backgrounds.  The research clearly identifies practices that can aid recovery as well as those that could potentially impede it. The research demonstrated that the recovery process is extremely complex.  Each person’s recovery path is unique, but nevertheless there are patterns to the process which is marked by ‘turning points’”.

According to Dr Evelyn Gordon, principal researcher, “The young men interviewed as part of the project indicated that the concept of ‘revitalising worthiness’ is central to recovery.  Regaining a sense of being valued as an individual and developing a sense of deserving of life, was key in moving from a death orientation to a life orientation.  The research showed that when people are suicidal they try to protect themselves and others from their deep inner pain by cutting themselves off from the world and hiding themselves away more and more. Eventually they become increasingly isolated, believing that they have nothing to offer and that they do not deserve to live”.

“We found that revitalising worthiness involved two key aspects. The individual had to decide between life and death, which I call a ‘crisis of destiny’, and they had to find their own unique place in the world, which I call ‘earning a life’. Sorting out the ‘crisis of destiny’ involved facing and resolving conflict between living and dying and this turning point often happened when the individual reached ‘rock bottom’. Revitalising worthiness also involved building a new life that demonstrated to the individual and to others that the person deserved to be alive and to have a life. This turning point often happened when the individual no longer felt ashamed or afraid of being themselves and began to reconnect with themselves and others”.

The study will inform practice in relation to working with the suicidal person.  Health professionals have genuine power to enhance or reduce opportunities for people who are suicidal to make sense of their lives and to regain control.

The health professionals who the young men identified as making the most positive difference in their lives were those who acknowledged their struggles and worked alongside them to resolve their fears and concerns.

 Practices that were identified as unhelpful included those which were controlling, confining, coercive and stigmatizing, such as pejorative labelling and exclusion from their own care and treatment. In addition, an assumption that suicide prevention is always possible can be counter-productive and traumatising, as it perpetuates the individual’s sense of difference and powerlessness and forces them to conceal their suicidality.

The full findings from the study will be reported on Friday at a suicide conference in the Helix, DCU. Three separate handbooks to help people ‘turn the corner’ will soon be developed for professionals, for those feeling suicidal, and for their families and carers. The full report on the research will be available on the internet at www.dcu.ie or www.hrb.ie.