Preventive Methods of Attempted Suicides on the Basis of Epidemiological Study And stressful Life Events in 100
Attempted Suicide , Clients of a University Poisoning Ward in Mashhad
S.E. hosseini
Preventive methods of attempted suicides on the basis of epidemiological study and stressful life events in 100 attempted suicide clients of a university poisoning ward in Mashhad members, or their friends, before their attempt. 24%declared that conflicts often existed between their parents and parents of 14% had divorced. So, we found parental conflicts in 38% of cases. The study of psychiatric or medical disorders accompanying attempted suicide showed depression in 23%, history of psychosis in 10%, 3 of them had been diagnosed schizophrenia and 49% had miscellaneous disorders including epilepsy, migraine ,dysmenorrhea, infertility, psychiatric disorder induced by war or a recent history of an acute disease of surgery.
Statistical tests confirmed that stressful life events were distributed normally between cases of attempted suicide. It seems it is practical to put strategies of preventing suicide according to the triangle of pathogenesis i.e, pathogenic factors, individual and environment. Strategies affecting pathogenic factors contain controlling stressful life events such as unemployment, and restricting accessibility to drugs and other poisonous substances.
Strategies affecting an individual, should focus on modifying cognition, affection and conation. Cognitive modification includes correcting faulty information processing, and changing the meaning of stressful life events to enable the individual for a better problem solving trend. Strategies affecting affects, are to accent on the punishments confirmed for who commit suicide in the Day of Resurrection in Divine instructions. Strategies focusing on conation can be summarized in relaxation therapy and continuous control on persons with suicidal thoughts, till the risk subsides. Strategies affecting environment, consider finding solutions for family conflicts, helping new established families, vocational stressors, correcting friendly peer groups relationships and socio-cultural trends. Finally in order to control all aspects of systems interfering with suicide, we emphasize on establishing a “National center of preventing suicide” with contribution of non-governmental forces with related professionals.
Suicide is “a joint problem”, which has been studied in many fields of sciences and researches. In our research suicidal attempt by self- poisoning was studied in epidemiological and psychological trends. Population of the study was 100 cases of deliberately self- poisoned who had been admitted to the university hospital and treated successfully with professional medical care.
Two questionnaires were provided. The first one was an epidemiological questionnaire, and the second was social readjustment rating scale of Holmes and Rahe, which enables us to obtain a quantitative assessment of the amount of stress experienced during the previous year. Data were analyzed by software of Statistical and tables of analysis variance, Duncan tests, regression and correlation tests were performed. Throughout every interview, cases $answered an open- ended question about the main cause of suicidal attempt.
Our results show that 78% of cases of $attempted suicide lived in urban areas and their life change unit (LCU) was significantly higher than cases who lived in rural areas. Unemployment for at least one month was reported in 19% of respondents. 40% of cases said that their income was insufficient for their life. 43% of cases were single and 42% were married, 18 of them (40% of married) had married in the previous year.
In couples who were living separately and families with two wives, life change unit was significantly higher than others. 34% of cases had visited psychiatrists at least once during their life, 6 of them had a history of psychiatric hospitalization. 25% had overdosed drugs, which had been prescribed for themselves. 58% of cases had fulfilled their suicidal decision in less than 24 hours, whereas 19% had had suicidal thoughts for more than one month. 30% had declared their intention at least with one of their family.
The quarterly journal of Fundamentals of Mental Health
Volume : 1
Year : 2000, Winter
No.4