Here is how to tell if someone is suicidal

Suicide can sometime be communicated out of the blues If you suspect that a person close to you might commit suicide do something

 

They tell you that suicide is selfish, that it is cowardice, and that it is wrong. That suicide is no way to die. What they don’t know is that it takes courage to tie a noose, put your neck in and grit your teeth, shit your pants, clasp and unclasp your hands as you wait for the rope to cut deeper into your flesh.

 Honestly speaking, it takes courage to swallow a liter of sulphuric acid, let it burn its way down your throat, down through the esophagus and wreck havoc as it settles down your stomach. Tell me what is the cowardice in swallowing triatix? I mean you all know how bad it smells even the ticks can’t stand it.

There is absolutely no cowardice in choosing to die via a bullet let loose by your own hands. Suicide is many things but it is not cowardice! David Mitchell says that; cowardice has nothing to do with it- suicide takes considerable courage.

Most people would rather not talk about suicide. It is a taboo amongst most African cultures. (Ever attended a funeral of someone who committed suicide? Then you know what I am, saying) in the church setting, it is a murder which is a violation of the commandments. Suicide and attempted suicide is viewed as a curse in most communities. Most people will go Iraq and Iran on victims of attempted suicide.

They will rush them to the hospital alright but they often receive an uncalled for tongue-lashing. There is this grown man who had drank a whole bottle of a pesticide and his brothers rushed him to the hospital. While he was retching and clutching his stomach in pain, a brother of his who happened to be a teacher kept glaring at him and reminding him that he is the one who had chosen the pain.

Needless to say, he passed away hours later. A mother of four drowned a bottle of triatix. Her husband and good Kenyans rushed her to the hospital only for them to chide her for being so stupid. She died after a two day stay in hospital, because her husband didn’t have money to buy her drugs that could reduce the side effects of the poison!

Sometimes, a person will commit suicide out of the blues. They will be alright, and then the next minute they will be found dangling from a tree, lifeless. Most suicidal individuals however will behave in a certain way for sometime before they kill themselves.

Here is how to tell if someone is suicidal;

They focus on the gone past- they dwell on past losses and defeats. They anticipate no future- some might say the world will be a better place without They are distracted and lack humor They are pre-occupied with death Some are dominated by hopelessness and helplessness Some  will let you know that they are intending to kill themselves- take it seriously

A person preparing to die will visit family and friends to say good bye, some will write a suicide note therefore checking their rooms would be prudent. Some will write a will and others will purchase a means to their end, a rope, a gun……

Original article appeared in www.saringi.com