Highest Australian suicide rate in 13 years driven by men aged 40 to 44

[lostinblue 1,989]

Men depressed as adolescents in the 1990s have carried their suicidality with them into middle age, says mental health commissioner Ian Hickie

Men who were depressed as adolescents in the 1990s have carried their suicidality with them into middle age, leading to the highest suicide rate in 13 years, a national mental health commissioner, psychiatrist Prof Ian Hickie, says.

New mortality data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday shows the overall suicide rate has increased significantly from 10.9 deaths by suicide per 100,000 people in 2013 to 12 suicides per 100,000 people in 2014 – the highest rate since 2001.

Suicide survival stories must be told, says Australian mental health chief

A Sane Australia study reveals the mental health system is missing a key ingredient – the advice of survivors

Read more

Suicide is the leading cause of premature mortality in Australia. But rates have been been particularly stark in men aged 40 to 44 years, with 18.3% of male deaths in this age group attributable to suicide.

While the highest age-specific suicide death rate for men in 2014 was seen in the 85 years and over age group, Hickie said suicide among middle-age men was increasing dramatically and that it was concerning that people in the most productive years of their lives were dying.

“There are a group of men who are, as they age, taking their suicidality with them and these are the people driving the increase we see in suicide deaths,” Hickie said.

Suicidality, also known as suicide ideation, is when people experience serious thoughts of suicide.

“Youth suicide hit its peak in the 1990s and men suffering from unaddressed depression and mental health problems then are having that exacerbated by problems they face as they enter middle age, leading some to suicide,” Hickie said.

Many of these men were employed in manufacturing, construction, farming and mining, Hickie said, fields which over the past few years have experienced high levels of redundancies and uncertainty.

Men suffering from unaddressed mental health problems are having [those] exacerbated by problems they face in middle age

Prof Ian Hickie

“Those with better employment prospects in these fields a decade ago are now experiencing a downturn, they often have families to support and mortgages to pay and they are then losing their jobs and losing their connection to friends and financial security. They become disconnected.

“Sometimes their families fall apart as a result and they find themselves going through a divorce and personal upheaval too.”

There were no strong mental health campaigns and services targeting middle-aged men in these fields, Hickie said. While people employed in secure and growing industries, and who were technologically savvy, had strong prospects of reaching out for help when they were depressed, he said, men in more hands-on fields often felt they had nowhere to turn.

“There is a considerable variability in suicide rates, so while it’s on its way up nationally, we know suicide in higher-resourced areas is half that, while suicide in rural and regional areas, with declining industries and low resourcing, is twice that.

“That’s why the mental health commission’s national review called for 12 big regional trials to be held, backed by substantive financial investment, to work out how you maximise new technology and coordinate health services and prevention services and communities in regional areas to reach these people. But this hasn’t happened.”

Prof Helen Christensen, the chief scientist of the Black Dog Institute and the NHMRC centre for research excellence in suicide prevention, said it was essential to reach people before they reached crisis point.

“If we look to the research evidence from here and overseas, there are clear strategies that have been proven to reduce suicide risk,” she said.

“Only some of these are currently in use in Australia, and implementation tends to be scattered and disproportionate to their impact. It’s common sense. If we know what strategies are effective, surely we can have maximum impact by implementing them together.”

The highest rate of suicide in more than a decade should be a cause of great concern, according to Sane Australia CEO, Jack Heath. He described the situation as “simply unacceptable”.

“We need to redouble our efforts to prevent suicide at a national, state and local level,” he said.

“As a country, we’ve been able to drastically cut the number of deaths from heart disease, aids, cancer and motor vehicle accidents. We can, and must, do the same with suicide.

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/mar/09/highest-australian-suicide-rate-in-13-years-driven-by-men-aged-40-to-44

[Jacque67 7,328]

This is a truly worrying phenomenon ...apparently the suicide rate is rising in the States , too.

However I learned today on VJ that bothering to care about people who don't care about themselves.....is a waste of time and resources .

[The Nature Boy 7,659]

Men depressed as adolescents in the 1990s have carried their suicidality with them into middle age, says mental health commissioner Ian Hickie

Men who were depressed as adolescents in the 1990s have carried their suicidality with them into middle age, leading to the highest suicide rate in 13 years, a national mental health commissioner, psychiatrist Prof Ian Hickie, says.

New mortality data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday shows the overall suicide rate has increased significantly from 10.9 deaths by suicide per 100,000 people in 2013 to 12 suicides per 100,000 people in 2014 the highest rate since 2001.

Suicide survival stories must be told, says Australian mental health chief

A Sane Australia study reveals the mental health system is missing a key ingredient the advice of survivors

Read more

Suicide is the leading cause of premature mortality in Australia. But rates have been been particularly stark in men aged 40 to 44 years, with 18.3% of male deaths in this age group attributable to suicide.

While the highest age-specific suicide death rate for men in 2014 was seen in the 85 years and over age group, Hickie said suicide among middle-age men was increasing dramatically and that it was concerning that people in the most productive years of their lives were dying.

There are a group of men who are, as they age, taking their suicidality with them and these are the people driving the increase we see in suicide deaths, Hickie said.

Suicidality, also known as suicide ideation, is when people experience serious thoughts of suicide.

Youth suicide hit its peak in the 1990s and men suffering from unaddressed depression and mental health problems then are having that exacerbated by problems they face as they enter middle age, leading some to suicide, Hickie said.

Many of these men were employed in manufacturing, construction, farming and mining, Hickie said, fields which over the past few years have experienced high levels of redundancies and uncertainty.

Men suffering from unaddressed mental health problems are having [those] exacerbated by problems they face in middle age Prof Ian Hickie

Those with better employment prospects in these fields a decade ago are now experiencing a downturn, they often have families to support and mortgages to pay and they are then losing their jobs and losing their connection to friends and financial security. They become disconnected.

Sometimes their families fall apart as a result and they find themselves going through a divorce and personal upheaval too.

There were no strong mental health campaigns and services targeting middle-aged men in these fields, Hickie said. While people employed in secure and growing industries, and who were technologically savvy, had strong prospects of reaching out for help when they were depressed, he said, men in more hands-on fields often felt they had nowhere to turn.

There is a considerable variability in suicide rates, so while its on its way up nationally, we know suicide in higher-resourced areas is half that, while suicide in rural and regional areas, with declining industries and low resourcing, is twice that.

Thats why the mental health commissions national review called for 12 big regional trials to be held, backed by substantive financial investment, to work out how you maximise new technology and coordinate health services and prevention services and communities in regional areas to reach these people. But this hasnt happened.

Prof Helen Christensen, the chief scientist of the Black Dog Institute and the NHMRC centre for research excellence in suicide prevention, said it was essential to reach people before they reached crisis point.

If we look to the research evidence from here and overseas, there are clear strategies that have been proven to reduce suicide risk, she said.

Only some of these are currently in use in Australia, and implementation tends to be scattered and disproportionate to their impact. Its common sense. If we know what strategies are effective, surely we can have maximum impact by implementing them together.

The highest rate of suicide in more than a decade should be a cause of great concern, according to Sane Australia CEO, Jack Heath. He described the situation as simply unacceptable.

We need to redouble our efforts to prevent suicide at a national, state and local level, he said.

As a country, weve been able to drastically cut the number of deaths from heart disease, aids, cancer and motor vehicle accidents. We can, and must, do the same with suicide.

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/mar/09/highest-australian-suicide-rate-in-13-years-driven-by-men-aged-40-to-44

They have rigid gun control. This can't be possible

[Jacque67 7,328]

Oh boy.

[Expat1 971]

This is a truly worrying phenomenon ...apparently the suicide rate is rising in the States , too.

However I learned today on VJ that bothering to care about people who don't care about themselves.....is a waste of time and resources .

How insensitive!

[Jacque67 7,328]

How insensitive!

The horror...the horror...

[Jacque67 7,328]

Hungry like the wolf...

[Ban Hammer 14,384]

one post removed along with one quoting. do not use offensive terms for mentally challenged individuals

Post Content intended to degrade, intimidate, or incite violence or prejudicial action against a broad demographic or group of people identified by a unifying trait or characteristic (discrimination). For instance, racist or sexist content may be considered hate speech.

[Rob L 3,811]

This is a truly worrying phenomenon ...apparently the suicide rate is rising in the States , too.

However I learned today on VJ that bothering to care about people who don't care about themselves.....is a waste of time and resources .

The other thread I started showing an alarming rate of suicide increase among teenagers in America is hardly getting a glance. There is a stigma surrounding mental illness in the US that needs to change before a number of serious heath and social issues can be addressed with any degree of efficiency.

• 2nd amendment Trigger Alert: We don't want to have an adult conversation about mental illness and the ability to buy a gun without appropriate controls
• We are not be serious about supporting our returning hero's with the best mental health care and recognition that the physical and mental trauma's are not being
• We would rather jail the mentally ill and then ignore their underlying condition once we have them warehoused in prison
• We have cut the resources that help folks transition from inpatient care to the outside world which results with many being dumped on the streets
• Our courts are not able to fulfill their commitment to treat or even recognize mental illness distinctly from crime

[Jacque67 7,328]

<p> The other thread I started showing an alarming rate of suicide increase among teenagers in America is hardly getting a glance. There is a stigma surrounding mental illness in the US that needs to change before a number of serious heath and social issues can be addressed with any degree of efficiency.

• 2nd amendment Trigger Alert: We don't want to have an adult conversation about mental illness and the ability to buy a gun without appropriate controls
• We are not be serious about supporting our returning hero's with the best mental health care and recognition that the physical and mental trauma's are not being
• We would rather jail the mentally ill and then ignore their underlying condition once we have them warehoused in prison
• We have cut the resources that help folks transition from inpatient care to the outside world which results with many being dumped on the streets
• Our courts are not able to fulfill their commitment to treat or even recognize mental illness distinctly from crime

How so true.

[Expat1 971]

People should have the right to die with dignity if they choose to. Who are we to impose our morals on others?

[Rob L 3,811]

People should have the right to die with dignity if they choose to. Who are we to impose our morals on others?

I don't know what the drivers are in the Australian data above , but I would suspect that the number of suicides related to illness is less than 10 % in the US and I suspect many of those cases might benefit from treatment of depression.

So when you say right to die with dignity, what scenario are you talking about?

• Veterans from the two recent wars have twice the rate of suicide as the general population http://ww.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/25/ray-odierno-military-suicides_n_3984359.html
• ​LGBT suicide rates are 3 times the national average
• Children with autism are 28 times more likely to commit suicide
• Research conducted on suicide has concluded that more than 90 percent of people who kill themselves have depression or another diagnosable mental illness or substance abuse disorder. Substance abuse is another great instigator of suicide; it may be involved in half of all cases and it is estimated that 20% of suicides result from alcoholism.
• Well over 1.3 million attempts to end lives annually

http://www.emaxhealth.com/1357/25/33364/week-national-suicide-prevention-week.html

[Expat1 971]

Medication like Dylan Roof was taking? Yeah, sounds like a great plan. Has there been a mass killing nutjob that was not on medication?

[Rob L 3,811]

Medication like Dylan Roof was taking? Yeah, sounds like a great plan. Has there been a mass killing nutjob that was not on medication?

not sure what the point of your question is or how it addresses this

People should have the right to die with dignity if they choose to. Who are we to impose our morals on others?

[Expat1 971]

If someone really wants to off himself or herself they have the right to do it.