Archive for the ‘Suicide’ Category
Suicide Pact Forensic Case, Dr Saul and Dr Garbarino Testify
THIS ARTICLE was written by BY JESSICA STEPHEN
Issues of social immaturity and isolation, combined with romantic images from vampire novels, allegedly led a then-16-year-old boy to attempt suicide with a classmate, doctors testified Monday.
And, doctors concluded, the juvenile court system should be the venue to deal with the teen, who is facing an attempted murder charge in adult court for the alleged suicide pact.
“This is not a conventional crime,” said Dr. James Garbarino, a Loyola University professor who has written nearly two dozen books about child development, trauma and youth violence. Garbarino met with the teen in February, weeks before his 17th birthday.
“This is a mental health crisis that almost coincidentally involved criminal behavior,” Garbarino said. “Two troubled kids formed a suicide pact and were intent on implementing the plan, which was not directed at attacking people outside that little delusional system.”
Suicide pact
The boy was charged in December after reportedly telling police he and a 16-year-old girl made a mutual suicide pact. The boy led his father to the Hooker Lake boat launch, where the father found the girl bleeding Nov. 17 and called police.
“She said all I had to do was guide her hand,” the boy said, allegedly adding that he “took the knife and cut across her wrist. I then took the knife and cut my left wrist.” Both teens survived.
Under Wisconsin law, anyone over age 10 accused of a homicide-related offense can be charged automatically as an adult. But, as part of the reverse waiver process, the boy’s attorneys have the right to ask the court to consider hearing the case in juvenile court.
Juvenile court recommended
As part of a reverse waiver hearing that will continue in July, Garbarino testified Thursday that prosecuting the boy in adult court would not likely deter others and would not be in the boy’s best interests.
“This seems like such a, to use the term, no-brainer,” said Garbarino, who advocated for prosecuting the case in juvenile court. “It would be a travesty to do anything else.”
Dr. Jenna Saul, a child and adolescent psychiatrist from Wisconsin Rapids, echoed Garbarino’s conclusions. She also met with the boy in February.
In their testimony for the defense, both doctors described the boy as socially naive, young for his age and drawn in by the opportunity to love and be loved.
‘Utter infatuation’
Garbarino talked about the boy’s “utter infatuation” with the girl, as well as how taken the boy was with romantic vampire literature.
Saul said the boy spent his life trying to please others, even at the expense of disregarding himself, particularly after the girl said she could no longer bear the pain of living.
“He’s willing to do anything for other people,” Saul said. “So, he’s particularly vulnerable to being willing to be this self-sacrificing. … He wanted to help. He wanted to, in some way, take away the hurt for her. She came up with a solution: I need to die,” Saul said. “And he did not want her to have to die alone.”
Did not seek help
His pattern of not seeking help — from dealing with feelings about his parents’ separation to not asking for help after his special education services were withdrawn and his grades declined — also played a role.
Saul came to that conclusion after she asked the boy what he might have done differently, if he faced this situation again.
“His answer was he would have made sure he had met (the girl) when it was years before. … So, they could have been together, and she wouldn’t have had to suffer,” Saul said.
“It was astounding. He wasn’t asking for help. That wasn’t part of his repertoire, even after going through this.”
That indicated a need for mental health treatment, not incarceration, the doctors said.
The teen is out of jail on bond, under supervision from his parents.
© Copyright Kenosha News.
How to report suicidal content/threats on Facebook
How to report suicidal content/threats on Facebook
Facebook Help: How do I help someone who has posted suicidal content on the site?
If you have encountered a direct threat of suicide on Facebook, please immediately contact law enforcement.
You can submit reports of suicidal content to Facebook by clicking:
http://www.facebook.com/help/?search=suicidal#!/help/contact.php?show_form=suicidal_content
For reports in the United States, we also recommend that you contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, a 24/7 hotline, at 1.800.273.TALK (8255). If possible, please encourage the user who posted the content to contact the Lifeline as well. You can view a list of suicide prevention hotlines in other countries by visiting http://www.befrienders.org and choosing from the dropdown menu at the top of the page.
We encourage you to learn about how to identify and respond to warning signs of suicidal behavior online at the following address: http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/GetHelp/WhatifSomeoneIKnowNeedsHelp.aspx
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline:
- Lifeline wants people to report to Facebook first, as Facebook has the ability to provide identifying information and the process is faster if they can report all info to the Lifeline at that time.
- Facebook works with the Lifeline once the content is reported.
- (If it is international, then Facebook works with the appropriate international organization.)
- Facebook receives the notification, then provides the Lifeline with all information about the user. Unfortunately, Lifeline cannot comment on the process from Facebook’s end but believes that given Facebook’s sensitivity to suicide risk and knowing that their safety team works on the weekends, the Lifeline believes that the process is pretty quick and that it is the most efficient and quickest method for a user to receive help.
No Evidence of Increased Risk of Suicide with Antidepressants
In 2005, the FDA issued a black box warning for antidepressants and suicidal thoughts and behavior in children and young adults.
- Many clinicians felt that this warning was inconsistent with their clinical experiences, and that it was not consistent with the data.
- In Wisconsin, the rate of prescribing these agents to children did not decrease after the black box warning was issued, and the rate of suicide did not change. In other states, where the rate of prescribing of antidepressants decreased, there was an observed increase in suicidality.
Researchers have now completed a study intended to determine the short-term safety of antidepressants by standard assessments of suicidal thoughts and behavior in youth, adult, and geriatric populations and the mediating effect of changes in depressive symptoms. They used data from intent-to-treat person-level longitudinal data of major depressive disorder from 12 adult, 4 geriatric, and 4 youth randomized controlled trials of fluoxetine hydrochloride and 21 adult trials of venlafaxine hydrochloride.
They extracted data from the suicide items of the Children’s Depression Rating Scale–Revised (CDRS-R) and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale as well as adverse event reports of suicide attempts and suicide during active treatment. Data were analyzed from 9185 patients (fluoxetine: 2635 adults, 960 geriatric patients, 708 youths; venlafaxine: 2421 adults with immediate-release venlafaxine and 2461 adults with extended-release venlafaxine).
An analysis of the data showed that suicidal thoughts and behavior decreased over time for adult and geriatric patients randomized to fluoxetine or venlafaxine compared with placebo. No differences in suicidality were found for youths on fluoxetine or effexor compared to placebo. In adults, reduction in suicide ideation and attempts occurred through a reduction in depressive symptoms. In all age groups, severity of depression improved with medication and was significantly related to suicide ideation or behavior.
Study authors concluded that
- Fluoxetine and venlafaxine decreased suicidal thoughts and behavior for adult and geriatric patients by decreasing depressive symptoms.
- In youths, depression responded to treatment, but no significant effects of treatment on suicidal thoughts and behavior were found.
- No evidence of increased suicide risk was observed in youths receiving active medication.
See the published article:
Suicidal Thoughts and Behavior With Antidepressant Treatment
Reanalysis of the Randomized Placebo-Controlled Studies of Fluoxetine and Venlafaxine
Robert D. Gibbons, PhD; C. Hendricks Brown, PhD; Kwan Hur, PhD; John M. Davis, MD; J. John Mann, MD
Arch Gen Psychiatry. Published online February 6, 2012. doi:10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2011.2048
Posted in Suicide, depression | 
Tags: antidepressants and suicide, depression, treatment of suicide | 
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Suicide Among Soldiers Rivals Combat Deaths
Nearly as many American soldiers have died of suicide as have been killed in combat in Afghanistan.
- There were 197 Army suicides in 2008, according to the Army’s numbers. The total includes active- and non-active-duty soldiers.
- Last year, the number was 245.
- This year, through May, it’s already 163.
The Army has instituted many programs to counsel and train soldiers with a goal of suicide prevention. Several of them have failed. Often, as soldiers transitioned from one assignment to another, the new station was unaware of past mental health issues.
Source: U.S. military branches (2001-09) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (latest figures through 2006)
Credit: Adrienne Wollman
The rates per 100,000 people of suicide among active-duty personnel in the Army, Marines, Navy and Air Force. The statistics show an increase in suicide rates since 2001, compared with the relatively steady rate of suicide among the U.S. civilian population.
So is it all related to combat? who is at risk?
- Soldiers in transition, moving from a combat zone back home,
- Those with alcohol abuse problems.
- Many cases appear to involve both alcohol and overdose of medication.
- The cases speak to the Army’s inability to deal with mental health issues.
Col. Chris Philbrick, director of the Army’s suicide prevention task force, recognizes that the Army took too long to recognize that it had a crisis on its hands. They are changing now, including:
- A five-year, $60 million study with the National Institute of Mental Health.
- Online resiliency programs designed to test emotional, mental and social fitness.
- The Army says its screening methods now are as strict as they could ever be.