tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1509187841033628660.post7909802153104968238..comments2024-03-28T22:28:39.087-07:00Comments on Medicine and Social Justice: Suicide: What can we say?Josh Freemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10248920527894775520noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1509187841033628660.post-59840093814760084512013-12-15T09:45:52.793-07:002013-12-15T09:45:52.793-07:00My brother-in-law shot himself 3 days ago in the b...My brother-in-law shot himself 3 days ago in the brain and survived for 2 days until life support was removed. He had disabling medical conditions, was in severe pain, and miserable. We think his case speaks to a need for some sort of ethical suicide option, where a person can make the transition to end suffering with dignity and loving support. I am sorry for your loss, I have also seen a number of intelligent, sensitive young people commit suicide, and think their intelligence and sensitivity makes them vulnerable. I truly believe that if mindfulness and meditation were taught and practiced in school, it might deter that sort of pain and despair. May we all cease to suffer. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1509187841033628660.post-79090885755580955262013-12-13T09:49:26.858-07:002013-12-13T09:49:26.858-07:00While few absolutes exist in medicine, I am almost...While few absolutes exist in medicine, I am almost certain I will never hear, "How could someone with a 4-year old child have diabetes?" Not so with suicide, the terminal result of depression. I, too, know this from my own life and the life of my sister. If you read our list at a park, our husband's names would appear--really unrelated, just commonly occurring in the general population, not unlike other chronic diseases. But these deaths are different. For the survivors, we often persist in shame, silence, confusion. The manner of death blots out our natural ability to share fond memories of his huge laugh, generous spirit and great wit. In time, perhaps, we will gain enough wisdom to measure the function of the brain and the spirit as well as the pancreas. We can only hope.Deb Clementsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1509187841033628660.post-78660286667002114642013-12-12T15:18:13.887-07:002013-12-12T15:18:13.887-07:00...a terribly difficult topic to address, but I......a terribly difficult topic to address, but I'm not sure that there is not some causality involved, at least in some cases. We had an horrific wave of overdoses and suicides in our city, all but one male between 17 and 27 and all in a specific demographic. approximately 20 in less than two years. the overdoses were an artifact of an historic binge drinking culture and a new opiate (oxycontin)which led to sudden death or a quick and overwhelming addiction. the suicides, there were five, were all addicted youth who had been in and out of a woefully inadequate rehab system and were in despair. from my standpoint all of these deaths were the result of self-medication for depression as a symptom of that cluster of bad/frightening feelings we are trying to cram into the acronym PTSD and the origins of the depression were the experiences of these youth of a violent surround in their early childhood. so to a certain extent, at least in our case (and in my non-medical opinion), you can trace the originating experiences back to an original cause.beenthere/donethathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11649025952440251790noreply@blogger.com