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About Suicide

Risk & Protective Factors

It can be hard for people who aren’t thinking of suicide to understand what would lead someone to consider, attempt, or take their own life.

Behind each suicide or attempted suicide a complex web of factors is at play. No single cause explains or predicts suicide. However, certain groups who experience overlapping biological, psychological, social and cultural risk factors can become vulnerable to suicide. At the same time, protective factors can reduce risk and build resilience among all people.

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RISK FACTORS

  • Mental illness
  • Addictions
  • Social isolation
  • Major life transitions
  • Family history of suicide
  • Physical illness
  • Trauma
  • Oppression and discrimination
  • Poverty

PROTECTIVE FACTORS

  • Positive coping skills
  • Social support
  • Healthy relationships
  • Reduced stigma related to mental illness and suicide
  • Sense of purpose
  • Good health
  • Help seeking behavior
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Populations at a higher risk of suicide

Some groups of people are at higher risk of suicide because of their life experiences and underlying risk factors they may endure.

  • Middle-aged men die by suicide at a rate that is significantly higher than for women. They use more violent methods, but middle-aged men may experience more social isolation and often find it more difficult to get the help they need when they experience depression, loss or major life events.
  • LGBTQ2S individuals are at higher risk because of discrimination and gender barriers they may experience.
  • Some Indigenous peoples experience higher risk because of the underlying risk factors they experience, such as discrimination and intergenerational trauma.
  • First Responders are at higher risk because they often face acute stressors as a result of their work that may lead to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
  • Survivors of suicide, including friends or family members of someone who has died by suicide as well as those who have attempted suicide in the past. They may experience complicated grief where the stigma, trauma, guilt and confusion can feel unbearable.
  • People living with a mental illness or addiction are at higher risk for suicide. Major depression and other mood disorders present the most significant risk.
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Myths & Facts

Myth:

Asking someone if they are thinking about suicide will plant the idea in their head.

Fact:

Talking openly about suicide can actually provide much needed support and show that you care. It can also give the person time to re-think their decision and consider other options.

Myth:

Suicidal people don’t give warning signs.

Fact:

Up to 80% of people who attempt or die from suicide give warning signs and share their plan.

Myth:

People who talk about suicide are just trying to get attention.

Fact:

People who die by suicide usually talk about it first. They are in pain and oftentimes reach out for help because they do not know what to do and have lost hope.

Myth:

Once people decide to die by suicide, there is nothing you can do to stop them.

Fact:

Suicide can be prevented. Most people who are suicidal do not want to die, they just want to stop their pain.

Myth:

Suicide is selfish.

Fact:

People who are suicidal are in a state of crisis and may be experiencing distorted thinking. They may believe they are a burden and that their loved ones would be better off without them.

Myth:

Only those with mental illness are suicidal.

Fact:

Most individuals with mental illness do not engage in suicidal behaviour, and not all those who do have a mental illness. Poor coping with negative life events such as significant losses, stressors, illnesses and traumas may create a risk of suicide.