The Gender of Suicide


Book Description

Drawing on diverse theoretical and textual sources, The Gender of Suicide presents a critical study of the ways in which contemporary society understands suicide, exploring suicide across a range of key expert bodies of knowledge. With attention to Durkheim's founding study of suicide, as well as discourses within sociology, law, medicine, psy-knowledge and newsprint media, this book demonstrates that suicide cannot be understood without understanding how gender shapes it, and without giving explicit attention to the manner in which prevailing claims privilege some interpretations and experiences of suicide above others. Revealing the masculine and masculinist terms in which our current knowledge of suicide is constructed, The Gender of Suicide, explores the relationship between our grasp of suicide and problematic ideas connected to the body, agency, violence, race and sexuality. As such, it will appeal to sociologists and social theorists, as well as scholars of cultural studies, philosophy, law and psychology.




Gender, Lies and Suicide


Book Description

In GENDER, LIES AND SUICIDE, Walt Heyer analyzes the issues which fuel the tragedy of transgender suicide and shares selected stories from the many people who write him seeking to undo the tragic consequences from their decision to change genders.Transgenders undergo hormone injections and irreversible surgeries in a desperate effort to feel better. The media and transgender activists claim the radical treatment is successful and regret is rare, yet at the same time, they report that transgenders, even after treatment, are attempting and committing suicide at an alarming rate.Back in 1979, Dr. Charles Ihlenfeld, a close colleague of Dr. Harry Benjamin, the father of the transgender movement in the U.S., reported that 80% of those seeking a sex change should not have one; frequently too many of them committed suicide.GENDER, LIES AND SUICIDE reveals how today, many decades later, the suicides continue.




The Gendered Landscape of Suicide


Book Description

This book is an attempt to understand suicide from the perspective of a group of men who decided to take their own lives. Their stories imply that male suicide is not, as frequently portrayed, an impulsive action arising from particular, sex-specific, causes but relates to a cluster of interlinked issues which accumulate over time. These issues were not distinctively male concerns but were connected to gender in that the men’s difficulties were exacerbated by the existence of an emotional culture which inhibited males from expressing specific feelings. The prevailing form of masculinity impeded them in developing knowledge of, and speaking about, their emotional needs and from accessing help and this prolonged their suffering and made suicide a possibility. These men produced compelling accounts of their emotional pain which belied notions of male inexpressiveness but the findings point to a link between emotionally constraining cultures and suicidal behaviour for some groups of men.




SUICIDE IN MEN


Book Description

The goal of this book is to explore the phenomenon of suicide, focusing on males who are at a greater risk than females. Scholars and mental health professionals continue to have the tendency to ignore men and focus instead on the more narrow demographic groups. Attention is drawn to the lack of help-seeking behavior exhibited by men as well as the numerous recommendations for the prevention of male suicide. The issues specific to male suicide includes the atypical nature of male depression, the role of loneliness, drug and alcohol abuse, the male hormone (testosterone), and men’s preferred method for suicide (guns). Suicide in specific groups of men, including male athletes, soldiers, mass and serial murderers, suicide bombers, murder-suicides, and famous creative men, is discussed in great detail. In addition, the text explores the many and varied reasons for suicide in gay men and in ethnic minorities. The invited contributors provide a cross-cultural viewpoint with essays on male suicide in Australia, China, Ghana, Palestine, and Uganda. Two examples are given for potential programs that appear to be effective for men: Mates in Construction which was designed to help construction workers in Australia, and Question, Persuade and Refer (QPR) training. The book concludes with discussions of how to prevent suicide in men, a group known to deny the existence of personal problems and is reluctant to seek help. With three illustrations and 19 tables, this book will be an excellent resource for crisis interveners, researchers, counseling centers, mental health professionals, and human service providers.




Why People Die by Suicide


Book Description

In the wake of a suicide, the most troubling questions are invariably the most difficult to answer: How could we have known? What could we have done? And always, unremittingly: Why? Written by a clinical psychologist whose own life has been touched by suicide, this book offers the clearest account ever given of why some people choose to die. Drawing on extensive clinical and epidemiological evidence, as well as personal experience, Thomas Joiner brings a comprehensive understanding to seemingly incomprehensible behavior. Among the many people who have considered, attempted, or died by suicide, he finds three factors that mark those most at risk of death: the feeling of being a burden on loved ones; the sense of isolation; and, chillingly, the learned ability to hurt oneself. Joiner tests his theory against diverse facts taken from clinical anecdotes, history, literature, popular culture, anthropology, epidemiology, genetics, and neurobiology--facts about suicide rates among men and women; white and African-American men; anorexics, athletes, prostitutes, and physicians; members of cults, sports fans, and citizens of nations in crisis. The result is the most coherent and persuasive explanation ever given of why and how people overcome life's strongest instinct, self-preservation. Joiner's is a work that makes sense of the bewildering array of statistics and stories surrounding suicidal behavior; at the same time, it offers insight, guidance, and essential information to clinicians, scientists, and health practitioners, and to anyone whose life has been affected by suicide.




The Neurobiological Basis of Suicide


Book Description

With recent studies using genetic, epigenetic, and other molecular and neurochemical approaches, a new era has begun in understanding pathophysiology of suicide. Emerging evidence suggests that neurobiological factors are not only critical in providing potential risk factors but also provide a promising approach to develop more effective treatment and prevention strategies. The Neurobiological Basis of Suicide discusses the most recent findings in suicide neurobiology. Psychological, psychosocial, and cultural factors are important in determining the risk factors for suicide; however, they offer weak prediction and can be of little clinical use. Interestingly, cognitive characteristics are different among depressed suicidal and depressed nonsuicidal subjects, and could be involved in the development of suicidal behavior. The characterization of the neurobiological basis of suicide is in delineating the risk factors associated with suicide. The Neurobiological Basis of Suicide focuses on how and why these neurobiological factors are crucial in the pathogenic mechanisms of suicidal behavior and how these findings can be transformed into potential therapeutic applications.




Oxford Textbook of Suicidology and Suicide Prevention


Book Description

Part of the authoritative Oxford Textbooks in Psychiatry series, the new edition of the Oxford Textbook of Suicidology and Suicide Prevention remains a key text in the field of suicidology, fully updated with new chapters devoted to major psychiatric disorders and their relation to suicide.




Reducing Suicide


Book Description

Every year, about 30,000 people die by suicide in the U.S., and some 650,000 receive emergency treatment after a suicide attempt. Often, those most at risk are the least able to access professional help. Reducing Suicide provides a blueprint for addressing this tragic and costly problem: how we can build an appropriate infrastructure, conduct needed research, and improve our ability to recognize suicide risk and effectively intervene. Rich in data, the book also strikes an intensely personal chord, featuring compelling quotes about people's experience with suicide. The book explores the factors that raise a person's risk of suicide: psychological and biological factors including substance abuse, the link between childhood trauma and later suicide, and the impact of family life, economic status, religion, and other social and cultural conditions. The authors review the effectiveness of existing interventions, including mental health practitioners' ability to assess suicide risk among patients. They present lessons learned from the Air Force suicide prevention program and other prevention initiatives. And they identify barriers to effective research and treatment. This new volume will be of special interest to policy makers, administrators, researchers, practitioners, and journalists working in the field of mental health.




Sex Change-It's Suicide


Book Description

What other treatment focuses on surgery while 30% of the patients commit suicide?Dr. Charles Ihlenfeld, a colleague of Dr. Harry Benjamin, reported in 1979 that 80% of those seeking a sex change should not have one and frequently too many of them committed suicide. Not much has changed since then.Consider the evidence: most who have had sex change surgery consider suicide, 41% make an attempt and about a third are in so much pain that, unable to see any other option, take their life.This book explores the issues behind transgender suicide.




Suicide


Book Description

Approximately one million people worldwide commit suicide each year, and at least ten times as many attempt suicide. A considerable number of these people are in contact with members of the healthcare sector, and encounters with suicidal individuals form a common part of the everyday work of many healthcare professionals. Suicide: An unnecessary death examines the pharmacological, psychotherapeutic, and psychosocial measures adopted by psychiatrists, GPs, and other health-care staff, and emphasizes the need for a clearer psychodynamic understanding of the self if patients are to be successfully recognized, diagnosed, and treated. Drawing on the latest research by leading international experts in the field of suicidology, this new edition provides clinicians with an accessible summary of the latest research into suicide and its prevention. The abundance of new literature can make it difficult for those whose clinical practice involves daily contact with suicidal patients to devote sufficient time to penetrating the research and, accordingly, apply new findings in their clinical practice. In light of the WHO Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2020, this new edition is a timely contribution to the field, and a vital and rapid overview, that will increase awareness of suicide prevention methods.