Dr.Seussicide

Well this topic is so subjective and sensitive, I remember doing a research paper on suicide. The thing is, you'll never know what's going in the mind of that person, how difficult life may be to them, and their struggles. What if they did ask for help? What if no one did? What if people tried and failed? It's difficult to pin point where you went wrong in life, and I guess when you're depressed and in that state of intense depression and solitude, it'll be a spontaneous thing. To want to take your own life, consequences become trivial, maybe you'd wonder who'd miss you when you're gone. What if no one comes to mind? Maybe you'd think about your mom and dad, and how they'd miss you, but life's too unbearable at the moment to want to stay. It's a difficult thing, to say someone who committed suicide is selfish. We'll never know their state of mind... you ever read suicide letters? Awfully depressing how people think of themselves sometimes... especially when you read that it's a little girl of 13years old getting picked on because she's overweight. Or this little boy getting bullied because he's a "nerd". It really is a saddening though.. I don't think I can easily call them cowards.

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TheCunningStunt

From what I've seen, especially in Britain there really aren't. Anti-depressants and a doctors note so you can sit around in your house all day, isolated.

There's a school of thought that anti-depressants do more harm than good, but I don't know whether they do or not.

But treatment for it seems extremely poor. I remember talking to Vanilla about this a while ago, and she said in New Zealand if you say you have depression, there's some kind of process, more extensive testing is required.

Over here, you need to say the right things and you get a doctors note.

Maybe some people feel that the understanding and treatment for depression is so misunderstood, they have no other option. Or maybe they don't know how to seek help.

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Last FM

thomasracer56

Suicide is their way, but it's not the best way.

Sansa Stark

thomasracer, I don't think you're making any ****ing sense

thomasracer56

what do you mean? i'm just saying some think that's the only way out.

bungalow

for the record, i voted that it depends on the circumstances.

glastonelle

When I was 14 a girl at my school committed suicide. It was a private Catholic girls school so it was right controversial, and nobody really knew how to handle it as suicide is considered against God's will or whatever.

Not being a big religion person I just felt horrible for the girl, but there definitely were a lot of people who felt differently. When the teachers spoke about they called it 'the horrible accident' and they refused to see it as suicide, saying that she'd lost her way and all this other crap. Some bible-basher girls tried to convince me what she did was selfish and cruel, but I dont think killing yourself is selfish or cruel. Its just giving up really :/

I hate how they all avoided the word suicide, as if there was no way a 14 year old girl could be so unhappy. I hardly knew her, but telling someone theyre selfish for feeling sad is horrible. Espescially under these circumstances.

Guybrush

TheCunningStunt, I don't think the fact that suicide is something depressed people do and likely has a genetic basis takes away blame. It doesn't remove the fact that you still have a choice in the matter. If your choice is to kill yourself, then that seems selfish to me. It focuses only on the self, the problems and the way out of them, but ignores the wealth of new problems their suicide can cause to their loved ones.

Granted, context is important but that's how I generally feel.

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Something Completely Different

Seltzer

I agree with this post... I don't think that anyone who hasn't been in that kind of state can even begin to assess whether suicide is cowardly or not. It's all in the mindset, and depression really alters your judgement. And can suicide ever be considered selfish? I don't think there's a lot of 'self' involved in an act like that.

However, I will say that it's almost always cowardly to commit suicide if you have kids... you should never abandon your kids.

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Dom

I put sometimes because I think that if you have kids or a lot of people that care about you then you should really try absolutely everything before committing suicide (which I doubt a lot do). However, in other circumstances I think it can be understandable because of what they have to live with, etc. The thing is, in almost all cases you have absolutely no idea what's going through their head and so you can't say how you'd react in their position, therefore you're in no place to call them cowardly or not.

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