If you're one of the 95% of humans who live outside the US and Canada and you want to talk here is a list of numbers to call: http://www.suicide.org/international-suicide-hotlines.html
Suicide
71–80 of 291 posts
Re: Suicide
#72Earlier quoted context omitted.
I've never been entirely sure. A while ago I made http://suicidescale.com/ but the wording still feels awkward to me. You have to strike a balance between explaining and understanding without sounding condescending. Explaining the temporary condition can help so people know they aren't alone (knowing you are one of millions who have had the same exact thought processes is a wake up call). Mentioning the processes can…
I just checked your website. I'm in the step 5. And, yes, I now feel this post is very dangerous because I never thought of suicide. Worse. I have recently dropped of colleague and don't have any friends right now. (didn't talk with a human for something like 15-20 days). Any quick remedies? I'm feeling more anxious.
I've being in your shoes. One of the _most_ effective thing for me was to talk to a mental health professional - it was by far the best investment I've made in myself in the last several years. After 5 sessions I was able to resolve many anxiety, guilt, worries and other issues.
My biggest mistake was postponing the decision to talk to somebody for several months out of false pride, thinking I'm able to handle it myself.
Re: Suicide
#73I'm thankful someone wrote this. I've been seeing a lot of people talking about how depressed and/or suicidal and inadequate they feel quite frequently around here lately. Hell, even I've done some of that talking as I've been there recently too.
The part at the end where he says they will listen is huge. Never underestimate how much someone simply listening can really help. Also, talking to a sympathetic stranger is often more helpful or even easier than talking to someone you know.
I always wondered why so many people around here get to feeling this way and I've narrowed it down to a few things. First, startups are hard, they're often lonely, and burnout can creep up on you without you noticing. Burnout can really make you feel worthless. Then there are those who feel inadequate because they're reading all these stories about successful and smart people solving hard problems and making it big while they feel small, stupid, and inconsequential. There's a strong success bias in the submissions here and other places people like us peruse which can lead to strong feelings of worthlessness and self doubt.
I've been there and I understand so well all of these things. I often wish I had a clone that just repeated what I tell myself whenever my negative voice starts nagging: Baby steps, you can't know it all or be it all and you certainly can't conquer the world in a week. No matter what anyone else is saying or doing out there, in the end we're all human, we're all going through the same things and we all feel the same way at one point or another. It gets better.
Thanks for writing this and extra thanks for including those toll free lines.
Re: Suicide
#74Wonderful thought and worthwhile effort. And I see that Facebook is also making similar efforts. I'm glad to see that. My meta-thought about this is how do you make this proactive instead of passive? If you don't visit raganwald or Facebook, how will you get any encouragement this Christmas season? I've often thought that some corners of the Internet could benefit from a virtual chaplain who could approach members of…
I don't think it's that easy to tell, especially not on the internet. A better question might be, how do you reach out to people suffering in silence and convince them it is okay to talk? (An anonymous online suicide hotline which doesn't report cases to the authorities might help, but I suspect it would be trolled.) What Facebook effort are you referring to?
It is probably this: http://www.chron.com/news/article/APNewsBreak-Facebook-aims-...
(I work at Facebook, but am not involved in this feature.)
Re: Suicide
#75If you're one of the 95% of humans who live outside the US and Canada and you want to talk here is a list of numbers to call: http://www.suicide.org/international-suicide-hotlines.html
May I quote you?
Re: Suicide
#76[deleted]
Don't use your responsibilities as a reason to hang in there. There are better reasons to stay. You have your whole life ahead of you. I know that sometimes in all the craziness of life you can forget why you're still here but the reason is simply to live. I read a post here a few weeks ago about a guy who saved up a few dollars, got out of his home and just travelled the world for a few months. He worked on some projects while he was away but his main goal was simply to get out there and see the world. I thought it was beautiful and a reminder as to why we're really here.
Get a change of scenery. Do something you've never done before or have always wanted to. Remind yourself why you're alive. I promise there's more than a few excellent reasons to stay here (as in alive). You just lost sight of them, that's all.
Edit: I'd like to add that divorce is very close to the top of the most stressful events a person can ever experience and I think it even trumps a death in the family if I remember right. It's normal for you to feel so defeated because of this but always remember that this bad state is not permanent.
Re: Suicide
#77If you call the numbers given, is there any possibility they will call the police or otherwise interfere with you without your consent? Or is it a purely voluntary interaction in which they really just talk and listen?
No, not unless you say you're about to kill yourself.
Re: Suicide
#78[deleted]
Always remember that by suicide you are not only really killing yourself but also the awesome being that is inside you (Yes the voice in your head).LISTEN TO IT.DONT KILL IT.IT KNOWS THE ANSWERS ALREADY
Dont look outward for satisfaction and happiness.TRUE AND FULFILLING HAPPINESS ALWAYS COMES FROM THE INSIDE.
Also there is this awesome plant called Marijuana to help you talk to your inner being if you guys are not friends anymore!
Re: Suicide
#79Just to add a more optimistic note here: I had a severe suicidal depression a couple of years ago, and managed to completely recover from it by learning something new, which is one of the things that always lifts my spirits: web development. I am now in the process of starting my first startup and feel very happy about my life.
(I took antidepressants btw, don't be scared to take pills - they very often help and am convinced they made a difference for me)
So, if you are feeling depressed and learning new things tends to get you excited, consider dropping everything that is bringing you down (I started ignoring my job pretty much and got fired eventually, but it saved my life so I have no regrets), consider learning something new!
Re: Suicide
#80I was glad to upvote the thoughtful and helpful blog post submitted here and many of the thoughtful comments that other HN participants have posted here to help one another. I'm looking up Web links about what season of the year is the peak season for suicide
http://blogs.wsj.com/numbersguy/do-suicides-really-peak-duri...
because of the mention of the Christmas and New Year holiday season in the post. Any time of year is the wrong time to kill yourself, but according to medical textbooks I have read, the peak danger of completed suicide for most people who live in temperate zones in the Northern Hemisphere is actually May rather than the turn of the Gregorian Calendar year.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2005/may/12/mentalhealth.s...
The risk factor that peaks in May appears to be related to daylight variation with different seasons. Data from the Southern Hemisphere temperate zones and from the tropics support the hypothesis that sunlight variation is one influence on risk of completed suicide.
But anyway it's good any time of the year to remind people how to get help when they think about harming themselves. Other resources I just turned up during my Web search include
http://www.nmha.org/go/suicide
http://www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/suicide/prevention.htm...
http://www.who.int/features/qa/24/en/index.html
Stay healthy and enjoy the holidays and many years afterward.