Nowadays, we cannot deny that we live in a world that is changing by the minute, and technology that connects the world has created an invisible wall between families. You can find people of any age today gripped by anxiety, depression, mental issue, or suicidal feelings that can lead to suicidal crises.
Now, since the reasons for depression can differ for different people, for some people, it may be a dead-end job, study pressure, a financial problem, or family problems. Similarly, the response to a mental health crisis can differ for different people; however, one common thing is the desire to end this pain.
So, how do we know if someone is depressed? There are some obvious signs, such as sadness or tearfulness, as well as feelings of emptiness, hopelessness, and worthlessness. One may lose interest in their favorite hobbies, experience a schedule change, or experience sleep disturbance.
One may face irritation or hopelessness. One might feel sad, alone, and negative. It can prove that there is some other underlying mental health condition.
How to Stop Suicidal Thoughts: 10 Ways To Try
1. Try Not to be Alone
If you are suffering from depression, one thing that you may do is isolate yourself, but staying alone will only make you more vulnerable to negative thoughts. Here are some ways you can fight loneliness.
Plan your time. Develop your routine with realistic tasks; adjusting yourself may take some time. You can explore your hobbies and reach out to friends and family. Have a sleepover, or you can help your community by volunteering.
You can also have a pet or create a bond with a social animal like a dog. You can join a meditation club or a class related to your hobby and try to interact with more and more people.
You can always reach out online and find friends in online forums. However, be cautious of frauds and scams. Remember, you can always go to the people you know who are looking out for you.
2. Try to Distance Yourself from Toxic People in Your Life
Your depression may not always be caused by loneliness but by being in a toxic relationship with a family member, friend, or coworker. Here are some ways to determine if you are in a toxic relationship:
If you feel constantly demeaned and devalued, angry, unsupported, and misunderstood, or if it brings out the absolute worst in each other, ignoring such problems can make you feel worse. First, you need to understand that you are not at fault. A toxic relationship may affect your mental health, self-esteem, and physical health. Toxic people can affect your cardiac health as well.
And these can lead to suicidal thoughts in such a toxic relationship. However, you can always find your way out of it,
Talk about your situation, and your problems, with people you trust. Re-evaluate your relationship. Try to stand up for yourself. Try not to have a confrontation. If you can try to cut all ties with a toxic relationship, donโt be afraid to ask for help, even from the police. Remember, help is always one call away.
Ask for your support network. If you are experiencing physical and emotional exhaustion or abuse, reach out to your trusted people before leaving such a relationship. Get help right away.
3. Record your Growth During a Crisis
Well, if you are depressed and it is not because of loneliness or a toxic relationship, it may be due to work-related anxiety; it may be a fear of deadlines, family problems, authority, public speaking, or co-workers; or it might simply be a fear of failure in your own life.
So do not forget to maintain a record of your achievement; it can help you by giving you positive energy. It doesnโt have to be a big task; it may be as simple as doing your household chores or keeping your house neat and clean.
Do not complicate the process, and start simple. If you keep the goal too high, you might disappoint yourself. If one huge task gives you anxiety, break it down into simple, achievable steps and track your way up. Also, do not forget to love and respect yourself.
You can have daily tasks. Be transparent with your management. Rely on your support network. It is okay to have an assistant for complex work. Avoid politics at work, establish realistic goals for yourself, and own your deadline.
Sometimes it is easy to go off track, so you can try meditation and other activities to calm down and stay on track. Also, make sure you have adequate sleep patterns.
4. Try Helpful Resources and Feel Positive About Them
Plenty of good and helpful resources can help you feel and think positively. Try reading positive book quotes and telling yourself mantras that can instigate positive thinking and a good life. Depression can make your life so colorless that it is hard to tell yourself that the sunshine and rainbow are just around the corner with so much negativity going on around you.
You must be thinking, โHow can one even believe in positivity while forgetting the acute pain they suffer?โ You may not believe it, but positivity can help you improve your skillset and learn more. It can do wonders for your health and help you live longer. Always remind yourself with positive quotes like:
โOur greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.โ ~ Confucius
Or
โIf all you did today was hold yourself, I am proud of you.โ
โThere is hope even when your brain tells you there isnโt.โ John Green
Stick these quotes near your mirror or fridge and repeat them; they can help you think positively, brighten your day, and make it even better. Quotes can help your creativity; they can generate ideas and influence you regardless of where you are.
5. Find out What is Hurting your Psychology
Try to address what has been bothering you and find out the problems that you are facing in your daily life.
It can be difficult to determine whether the stress is due to your studies or your job or if you are being stressed by the people around you or the city you have been living in. Once you know it, confront your situation and figure out a solution.
Remember, the person who knows you the best is you, so the solution to your problems has been with you all along. Once you figure out what has been affecting it, you make changes. You are not helpless; once you start working and, with some time and patience, indulge in self-care, you will be better. Spend time and work on yourself. Face your fear.
6. Look for a Therapist
Psychotherapy is an effective treatment for clinical depression. Everyone can feel a little down sometimes, and you need to understand that it is okay to reach out. But some people may shrug off the thought of therapy because it can be expensive.
In that case, you can call your insurance company and collect information regarding therapy coverage or look for online therapy. If not, you can also contact any healthcare provider or family doctor; any professional help you can get will be useful.
A mental health professional may prescribe medication for acute or chronic depression. Your therapist can help you by recognizing the pattern of your depression. Cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT, is considered most helpful in mental disorders. Always remind yourself that your problems are temporary, but death is permanent.
7. Try a Healthy Diet
There is no specific diet to help you cure depression, but some nutrients can help you manage the symptoms better. One thing that can affect eating habits is nutrition counseling, and healthy diets have helped many people improve their symptoms. Here are some foods that experts recommend. Food with a nutrient such as selenium, vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants, vitamin B, and zinc can help, while obesity can increase suicidal thoughts.
Weight loss reduces the risk of depression by lowering blood pressure and improving overall mental health. Substance abuse is widespread among depressed individuals. To treat the symptoms of your depression, you could be more prone to use alcohol, marijuana, or other drugs.
Itโs not clear whether substance and alcohol addiction contributes to depression. But continued drug use may alter your brain, aggravate existing mental health issues, or trigger new ones.
8. Try to Raise your Self-Esteem
Depression is a self-perpetuating, vicious cycle of negativity; thus, it brings out negative thoughts, feelings, and actions. Depression feeds on suicidal thoughts. It can coexist with an unpleasant event or failure. It can lead to a personโs diminished self-worth.
This can lead to a very low evaluation of self-worth, which is evaluated by ourselves based on our feedback and achievements. To break this cycle, you must engage in certain activities, and to increase your self-esteem, you must remind yourself repeatedly that this will pass.
Try your hobbies and indulge in activities that make you feel good. Surround yourself with people who appreciate you. You donโt have to face these hard problems alone. Make sure othersโ opinions do not fuel suicidal ideation.
9. Do Things That Make You Feel Good
It is about what makes you feel better; you know what works best for you. You know your brain and what it needs; you are aware of the activities that indulge you and bring light to your mind; you keep reminding yourself how much you love yourself; you can also play musical instruments, and music is brain food.
10. Donโt Lose Hope
I know it is easier to say, โDo not lose hope,โ but with so many negative thoughts, feelings, and considerations, you need to understand that many beautiful moments ahead will be lost if you are not alive to see them.
When most people contemplate suicide, they realize that if they hope, all of their problems will be solved. Depression and negativity become less intense if a person is hopeful; it is the most amazing coping mechanism. Depression is highly treatable.
Donโt let negativity subjugate you; you need to know this, and you are not alone. Being hopeless can make managing suicidal thoughts worse.
What Can Help You when Having Suicidal Thoughts?
When those suicidal thoughts worsen your day, make sure you reach out for help. Make sure you go through suicide prevention when you start seeing the symptoms in a desperate situation where you feel suicidal. Visit the website of the national suicide prevention lifeline. Do not hesitate to reach out for immediate help from mental health specialists. You must have access to support, such as from friends and family.
With a ray of hope, anyone can fight depression. When someone is depressed, one always comes up with the worst possible conclusion; however, make sure you question yourself if it is just your depression. In the end, we wish you all the best in your battle. And you wish you had an amazing future.
ย Diagnosis
Suicidal thoughts or ideation can be diagnosed in a variety of ways.
Doctors have access to a variety of suicide risk assessment and screening techniques. These methods, however, are not always able to precisely forecast a suicide risk that is about to occur. A face-to-face interview is essential because of this.
In other circumstances, such as at a normal checkup for chronic pain or during therapy, a doctor or therapist may potentially detect indications of suicide.
where to find assistance
- Seeking assistance is very important if you or anyone you know is having thoughts of suicide. One can speak with a counselor or medical expert in confidence by calling the helplines and support services listed below:
- You can always reach to the round-the-hour hotline in a desperate situation such as 988. You can also call the 800-273 talk number if youโd like.
- Texting โHOMEโ to the number 741741 will link users to a counselor who is available around the clock
- Even if a veteran does not get benefits from the Veterans Administration, they can still use the Veterans Crisis Lineโs 24/7 online chat service. You can reach us by texting 838255 or dialing 988 and pressing 1.
- For teenagers and young people who identify as LGBT, The Trevor Project offers a crisis line. Call 866-488-7386 or text โSTARTโ to 678678 to get in touch.
- For anyone interested in learning more about suicide and its prevention, the following websites provide information:
- The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administrationโs Suicide Prevention Resource Center provides details on programs, toolkits, and successful tactics.
- The National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention promotes suicide prevention by collaborating with more than 250 national partners.
- This group, Zero Suicide, is of the opinion that suicide fatalities can be avoided in patients who receive care from behavioral health systems. It offers a plan for safer suicide intervention.
ย Summary
Suicidal ideation is the act of considering taking oneโs own life. Some people use the phrase synonymously with โsuicidal thoughts,โ but others consider suicidal ideation to be a separate and more serious mental condition.
They can seem to be taking unusual risks, giving up money or belongings, or making plans for their demise.
However, suicide can be avoided. Support from family members and medical experts can prevent someone from getting lonely or gaining access to harmful items like firearms. Planning for safety, therapy, and medicine may all be used in the course of treatment.
if a loved one is having suicidal thoughts, take them seriously
Last Updated on by Himani Rawat
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