If You Think of Suicide... Archives

People chat and eat at many tables close to each other in a crowded restaurant

Where is It OK to Speak of Suicide?

October 7, 2025

47

I was mid-sentence when someone slid a sheet of paper across the table to my friend Sam. “This is for you,” a female-sounding voice said to Sam, and the messenger slipped away without my ever seeing her. We were lunching at a…

People in crowd at concert holding their hands up in the shape of a heart

What Helps You Want to Stay Alive in Times of Despair?

by Stacey Freedenthal, PhD, LCSW

February 9, 2025

57

These days, anyone of any political persuasion can find reasons to despair. Dramatic social upheaval. Climate change. Wars. Artificial intelligence. Mondays. If you wish you could die, or if you outright think of killing yourself, what keeps you going? In another post,…

Parents and daughter looking down at something off screen

Helping Teens with Suicidal Thoughts Make a Safety Plan

by Kimberly O'Brien, PhD, LICSW

September 16, 2024

5

For many parents, there is nothing more terrifying than hearing your teen say they are thinking of suicide. Some parents freeze. Others become reactive or even dismissive. Despite these varying responses, a common theme is not knowing what to do or how…

How I’ve Survived and Thrived with Suicidal Thoughts

by Linda H. Straubel, PhD

September 15, 2022

20

My first suicide attempt seemed to simply happen to me. I write that it happened to me, because that’s what it felt like: an urge that swept down on me and instantly spurred me to action: I fled to the bathroom and…

Learning to Hope after 30 Years of Depression and a Suicide Attempt

by Shannon Heath Parkin

December 1, 2021

31

In May of 2015, I made a disabling suicide attempt by jumping in front of a Metro train. Somehow, I survived. My suicidal self had lied to me. It made me believe the only way to end my pain was to end…

Do You Wish You Could Go to Sleep and Never Wake Up?

by Stacey Freedenthal, PhD, LCSW

January 10, 2020

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“If only I could go to sleep forever.” “I want to die.” “I wish I’d never been born.” Do you ever have thoughts like these, and you do not want to kill yourself? Many people do. They want their life to end,…