This article was written exclusively for The European sting by Mr. Panos Syriopoulos, 23 years old and studied medicine at the University of Patras since 2017. He is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this article belong strictly to the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of IFMSA on the subject, nor that of The European Sting.
“A young person commits suicide due to financial difficulties”, “Suicide attempts are up to three times more than actual suicides”. These phrases are just some of the headlines we read in our daily news. Deciding to end one’s life is not only a personal choice, but is also part of a major social phenomenon. Young people must be persuaded not to give up survival through specific state measures and community youth initiatives.
The first priority of governments should be to reduce the stigma surrounding suicides. People who attempt suicide should not be viewed as “mentally ill” or their thoughts as “illogical”, as such statements elicit feelings of remorse. On the contrary, the authorities must find the causes of suicidal ideation and prevent them in the first place by carrying out screening of the population in order to identify the risk factors and to combat them. For example, average expenses should not exceed average incomes. If this is not possible, high-risk groups, such as the unemployed, should be subsidized. In addition, the financial and mental burden of people in difficulty could be alleviated by health insurance covering mental health expenses, stabilizing living conditions at home, ensuring a healthy work climate and promoting open discussions between employers and managers or on a regular basis. Another important measure would be to strengthen universities and other institutions with more mental health experts, ranging from social workers and occupational therapists to psychologists and psychiatrists, readily available to organize free meetings to offer help and appropriate therapy.
However, the most relevant actor to raise awareness about suicide is the youth community, as the majority of suicide victims belong to the 15-24 age group where suicide is the fourth leading cause of death. One method of informing the public is through social media campaigns on World Suicide Prevention Day (10/09) and World Mental Health Day (10/10) and interviewing people who have thought of committing suicide or who have attempted suicide. Through peer-to-peer communication, teens and college students will find an outlet to express their fears and conflicts and explain why someone may think of ending their life as the only way to resolve a serious situation. We can take initiatives such as building personal relationships with anyone who needs help or creating online apps and tools as a form of what is called ‘mental health watch’. We should recommend psychotherapy for everyone, regardless of the severity of their difficulties, in order to prevent suicidal ideation and not aggravate pre-existing psychological problems.
In conclusion, although coping with suicide is undoubtedly a difficult challenge, a sensible approach can be planned and materialized in order to inspire people to carry on with their lives stronger than before. Of course, the way “the world works” cannot change as quickly as we hope; it is rather a question of beginning to change our mentalities and to demand an improvement in living conditions so that soon suicide is not considered as “a solution” to our difficulties.
References
• http://suicide-help.gr/ori-stichia/
• https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/encyclopedia/content.aspx?contenttypeid=90&contentid=P02584
• https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/suicide
• https://www.cdc.gov/suicide/prevention/index.html
• https://www.cdc.gov/suicide/pdf/suicideTechnicalPackage.pdf
• https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/suicide
• https://www.paho.org/en/campaigns/world-suicide-prevention-day-2022
• https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-mental-health-day
About the Author
Panos Syriopoulos is 23 years old and has been studying medicine at the University of Patras since 2017. He comes from Athens, where he lives with his parents, and has no siblings. During his studies, he engaged in voluntary activities as a member of HelMSIC Patras since 2018 and local responsible for medical education for the 2019-2021 terms. His main interests are mental health, medical education, medical research, music and interpersonal communication.
