Maybe, maybe not. Regardless, we should still strive to give that person alternatives.
"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle". -- Plato
Edit: @aaron695: that is what I was trying to communicate
"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle". -- Plato
Edit: @aaron695: that is what I was trying to communicate
We should of course continue to research ways to stem suicides and the conditions that cultivate someone feeling they have no other options.
You seem to conjecture that refering someone to a hotline raises the chance of that person commiting suicide, while AFAIK all the evidence points towards suicide hotlines being effective at reducing stress and suicidality.
> seem to conjecture that refering someone to a hotline raises the chance of that person commiting suicide
I don't conjecture this at all.
> all the evidence points towards suicide hotlines being effective at reducing stress and suicidality.
What evidence? The entire point of this subthread is that we don't have any evidence that this is true. Or do you have some evidence we don't know about?
I'm not suicidal at the moment and feel that my life has some purpose - but why would I assume that a person who is suicidal knows less about his own life than I do?
However, deciding to commit suicide due to intractable terminal illness is often done in a very rational state of mind.
The big difference is that the later is a decision that is/should not be made alone, but with the assistance of your family, friends and or doctor.
Yes, these are only parts of life, and suicide ends life as a whole - but you have reasons why you're not stopping all of your friends from making all the small wrong decisions, right? You probably reason that they might know better, and if anything, their freedom includes the right to make mistakes.
Well, the same reasoning logically works for suicide, too - the magnitude of the components change, but the formula is still the same. I agree that it's a good idea to talk to someone who tries to commit suicide and make sure that they really want to make this decision and have thought about it - but our culture, meanwhile, painfully rejects the notion that in the end, you may agree with that person in their pursuit of suicide.
On another hand, you probably (statistically, given HN typical audience) support right to euthanasia; you think that if someone have immense physical suffering and no hope to escape from it, death is a viable alternative. But why do we reject the same treatment for emotional and intellectual suffering? You can't really feel both types, but for some reason, you suppose that one is more 'real' than another. That any emotional trouble can be healed, because "it's just in your head".
Respect for someone's freedom begins with respect for his decisions and respect for his mistakes. Too often the true reason for all this unasked for "help" is in selfish desire to "do good" instead of real empathy for another human being.
I speak as someone who has been there, is currently taking antidepressants, and has seriously considered the option at multiple times in my life. Depression will tell you there is no other method of relief from the pain, but depression lies.
Personally, if someone told me in advance that, if they ever attempted suicide, they'd like me to not interfere - then I'd accept that. But I have a friend who's alive because she hadn't told me that, and I did interfere, and she's glad I did.
No.
We should strive to help them.
This comment it literally saying we should feel better about ourselves even though I'm sure it wasn't your intention.