Pathways to Attempted Suicide as Reflected in the Narratives of People with Lived Experience

Abstract

Narratives, i.e., stories told by suicidal people, describing personal experiences and meanings given to these experiences, play an important role in understanding suicidal behaviour. The aim of the current study was to analyse suicidal processes that have resulted in attempted suicide and to improve the understanding of protective and risk factors of suicidal behaviour. Special emphasis was paid to religious/spiritual aspects. The material was collected in Estonia by conducting narrative interviews with adults (18 years or older) who had attempted suicide during their lifetimes (N = 8). Thematic analysis was used for analysing the data. The main themes identified from the narratives were: childhood and family relationships, romantic relationships, alcohol/drug abuse, losses, sleep, previous suicide attempts, and religious/spiritual beliefs. The findings of the study show that there are many pathways to attempted suicide and that the process leading to attempted suicide is complex. Protective and risk factors are both multi-faceted.

Widening the Lens on Suicide Prevention – Introducing Practice and Policy Insights Articles

“…People who live with suicidal thoughts or have made a suicide attempt reinforce the idea that suicide is complex, and that no one person’s experiences are the same as another’s. Many do say, however, that although their wish to put an end to their emotional pain can be underpinned by mental health problems, there is often a whole range of other factors at play such as stigma and discrimination, cultural or religious pressures, isolation, relationship issues, financial problems, and lack of support from social services (Luhaaar & Sisask, 2018; Shamsaei et al, 2020; Williams et al, 2018). The corollary of this is that although they see clinical services as a core response in any suicide prevention strategy, they are increasingly calling for peer-led, nonclinical services to complement these clinical approaches (Schlichthorst et al, 2020).…”