Why depression and suicidal thoughts don’t always have to be discussed with a health professional
Personally, people with suicide thoughts shouldn’t be automatically referred to a professional. It must be a cultural thing because I know lots of people in the UK who have been depressed and suicidal and never consulted a ‘professional’ and sorted their own lives out, given emotional support from family and friends – and time, and I am one of them. It really depends on the individual, the situation and the personal history.
Reliance on professionals instead of our own resources simply makes us dependent, especially on utopic medication designed to relieve our depression, but which then keeps us hooked. I am not saying that professionals should not be involved at some point, where it is clearly necessary. As a former nurse, I am saying that often that is not the answer because people merely keep repeating the process after advice or get hooked on medicines designed to ‘cure’ them without having any greater quality of life.
I think it is the culture one is brought up in which dictates the attitude to such issues. Like in the US, it seems the custom to sue at the drop of a hat, so many people, especially in the business world, are involved in some litigation at some time. In Britain, the opposite is true. One tries negotiating and talking first instead of always rushing to the courts. There is thus far more latitude to behave naturally than to be worried about the legal consequences.
I am not saying that suicide intentions shouldn’t be referred to professionals. What I firmly disagree with is the automatic nature of that referral, or the suggestion that it is the only option, instead of helping the person to see how they can help themselves at such times. That’s why we have organisations like the Samaritans here in the UK who deal mainly with suicide callers. Only a few of them are ever referred, with hardly any reports of people killing themselves after speaking to a Samaritan (5,396 calls were made last Boxing Day alone from people feeling lonely, dejected and desperate!).
I have called the Samaritans 3 times in my lifetime when I felt at rock bottom and was never told to see a doctor or professional. They just listened and helped me work through my pain. I was much the better for it. As I said before, it could be a question of culture and how we approach things compared to the US.
