Suicide Risk Does Not Go Up During Holidays
However, depression is one of the most treatable mental illnesses.
Glen Gabbard, MD, a psychiatrist and psychoanalyst at Menninger in Topeka, Kan., agrees. The most important message, holidays or no holidays, is that suicidality is treatable, he tells WebMD. Most suicidal people have a treatable psychiatric disorder and treatment may mean antidepressants, abstinence from alcohol or other drugs and/or psychotherapy.
"Studies of suicide have shown that isolation is one of the risk factors and the majority of us are not isolated during the holidays," Gabbard says. But he adds that feelings of hopelessness, another important predictor of suicide risk, should be taken very seriously.
Be concerned when a person is saying he or she has no future and is giving away possessions. "The purchasing of a gun is another ominous warning sign and if there is any risk at all of suicide, every fire arm should be removed from the house," he tells WebMD.
"At any case if someone expresses a wish to commit suicide, this person should not be left alone," says Gabbard. "I would advise them to talk to friends or distant family members via e-mail or phone." During the holidays, they can volunteer to feed the homeless on Christmas day and/or can get talk to a clergyman about their feelings. And finally, he adds, there are suicide hotlines available for referrals to psychotherapists and psychiatrists.