Thread by @babadookspinoza

TW: suicide

We need to be talking constantly about the spike in mental illness and suicides that’s accompanied the Covid pandemic not only so that people realize the value of limiting isolation as much as possible, but also so that desperate people realize this isn’t permanent.

A big factor in depression turning to suicide is the attendant feeling of hopelessness—depression makes us feel we will always feel this way. Having a concrete and (hopefully) temporary cause to point to can be huge in getting people to stop blaming themselves and despairing.

We had a patient yesterday who had stayed sober for years and was beating himself up for relapsing. I told him that a lot of people who had been fine for years are suddenly relapsing now. He honestly hadn’t even considered that the pandemic isolation might’ve been a factor.

Just personally, I know the knowledge that the pandemic has a real mental health dimension to it has helped me push aside my own feelings of hopelessness because I can remind myself that I’m not able to think about my life clearly right now. It’s not much, but it’s something.

The other side of it is that, while the isolation might be temporary, the cruelty of our society that’s fully on display right now isn’t—or at least the latter is likely to persist much longer. And there’s nothing I can tell myself to make my anger or sadness over that go away.

But again: we’re not able to look at the facts, *especially* the most depressing ones, with clear eyes when we’re actively depressed. Be kind to yourself and leave the question of whether you can bear living in such a society for another day. You owe yourself that much.

Just an addendum to this: if you have someone you’re comfortable talking to then PLEASE reach out to them if you need to (they’ll be glad you did!) but if you don’t have anybody else, I am *happy* to listen. I mean that. My dms are open for a reason. Your life is too important.

If you need it, the National Suicide Hotline is 1-800-273-8255. Just be aware that they may call in a wellness check on you that could lead to you being committed for a time. If it’s a last-ditch situation then don’t let that stop you—some people need that—but just be aware.

My recommendation would just be to go straight to the emergency room instead if you think you need in-patient care. Less contact with police, less hassle, and voluntary commitment tends to be treated *slightly* differently by doctors when it comes to discharge discussions.

TW: suicide

Someone just brought up an important point: there’s a distinction between passive and active suicidal ideation, and good therapists know not to overreact to the former, which usually isn’t an immediate safety concern but rather a warning sign of worsening depression.