A few weeks ago, I got a message from my friend saying that a guy had committed suicide. I seriously thought that this guy was playing a prank on me. Later I discovered the truth. He did commit suicide. I had always seen this guy to be one with great self-esteem and self-confidence. Then why out of nowhere should he take this decision. That was all people spoke for a couple of months. Everyone had only one question. The same question, to be exact. Why?

Now thinking about this issue of suicide, I did a little research and the results I got were too shocking. Statistics show that every five minutes, someone, somewhere in India, attempts suicide. This makes suicide the third major cause of death. Also, annually more than 1,00,000 people commit suicide in India, of which one-thirds are youth.  Diverse backgrounds, diverse goals and diverse opinions! But same decision!

Today, the youth in India form one of the most vulnerable groups, who on the one hand are expected to be the leaders, the backbone of tomorrow’s India, while on the other hand, are a demoralized and confused cluster. There is an imbalance between the youth population and the limited opportunities for admission in schools and colleges, and specifically in professional courses. This puts the youth under great pressure. First class and second class are hardly adequate results anymore.  Parents are helpless too, as both public and private institutions have caused economic burden to them. If you think getting admission is the toughest thing that youth can ever experience, rethink! Placements are another hell. You need to get everything right. And even after getting placed, the comparison in relation to the pay received, causes all the more pain. A person with the pleasure of working but with limited salary is certainly not welcome in this society. People have come to a point where they are ready to trade their work pleasure for money. Tough deadlines and hectic work atmosphere have taken the lives of many youth.

Friendships and relationships have also played equal parts in this gamble for life. Youth are too sensitive to sort any sort of relationship problem. The problem may be anything; fight with best friends, bitter misunderstanding with girlfriend/ boyfriend followed by an even bitter break-up, family issues with parents fighting over their lives or over financial issues. But the youth are greatly affected. They bundle up all these grievances in their hearts and eventually give their hearts a complete rest so they will never have to face the same, again.

There are plenty of youth who have followed their heart to be what they wanted to be. But the fact that this suicide virus is taking away the lives of millions of youth is alarming. Something has to be done to cripple it. In battle between the thirst to have their dream life and the urge to fulfill the expectation of the society, many are shattered. While a very few regain their stand, the rest take the ultimate decision of ending their lives.

Untreated depression is the number one cause for suicide.

Untreated mental illness (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and others) is the cause for the vast majority of suicides. Also, some people are genetically predisposed to depression, and thus they may not appear to be undergoing any negative life experiences, yet still become depressed, and may die by suicide.

So, some people die by suicide because of a depression that was caused by genetics. You probably have heard about some individuals who died by suicide and did not exhibit any symptoms or appear to have any serious problems. In these cases, it is possible that the person had depression that occurred because of this genetic factor. It is very rare that someone dies by suicide because of one cause. Thus, there are usually several causes, and not just one, for suicide. Many people die by suicide because depression is triggered by several negative life experiences, and the person does not receive treatment – or does not receive effective treatment – for the depression. (Some people need to go through several treatments until they find one that works for them.)

Some of the negative life experiences that may cause depression, and some other causes for depression, include:

• The death of a loved one.
• A divorce, separation, or breakup of a relationship.
• Losing custody of children, or feeling that a child custody decision is not fair.
• A serious loss, such as a loss of a job, house, or money.
• A serious illness.
• A terminal illness.
• A serious accident.
• Chronic physical pain.
• Intense emotional pain.
• Loss of hope.
• Being victimized (domestic violence, rape, assault, etc).
• A loved one being victimized (child murder, child molestation, kidnapping, murder, rape, assault, etc.).
• Physical abuse.
• Verbal abuse.
• Sexual abuse.
• Unresolved abuse (of any kind) from the past.
• Feeling "trapped" in a situation perceived as negative.
• Feeling that things will never "get better."
• Feeling helpless.
• Serious legal problems, such as criminal prosecution or incarceration.
• Feeling "taken advantage of."
• Inability to deal with a perceived "humiliating" situation.
• Inability to deal with a perceived "failure."
• Alcohol abuse.
• Drug abuse.
• A feeling of not being accepted by family, friends, or society.
• A horrible disappointment.
• Feeling like one has not lived up to his or her high expectations or those of another.
• Bullying. (Adults, as well as children, can be bullied.)
• Low self-esteem.

SUICIDE – A FACT

Incidence and Rate of suicidal deaths in India (1989-2011)

Year	Suicide Incidence			Estimated Mid-year Population (in lakhs)	Suicide Rate(per 100,000)
	Male	Female	Total
1989	40212	28532	68744	8118	8.47
1990	43451	30460	73911	8270	8.94
1991	46324	32126	78450	8496	9.23
1992	47481	32668	80149	8677	9.24
1993	49851	34393	84244	8838	9.53
1994	52752	36443	89195	8999	9.91
1995	52357	36821	89178	9160	9.74
1996	51206	37035	88241	9319	9.47
1997	56281	39548	95829	9552	10.03
1998	61686	43027	104713	9709	10.79
1999	65488	45099	110587	9866	11.21
2000	66032	42561	108593	10021	10.8
2001	66314	42192	108506	10270	10.6
2002	69332	41085	110417	10506	10.5
2003	70221	40630	110851	10682	10.4
2004	72651	41046	113697	10856	10.5
2005	72916	40998	113914	11028	10.3
2006	75702	42410	118112	11198	10.5
2007	79295	43342	122637	11366	10.8
2008	80544	44473	125017	11531	10.8
2009	81471	45680	127151	11694	10.9
2010	87180	47419	134599	11858	11.4
2011	87839	47746	135585	12102	11.2

---

Age and Gender wise profiles of those who died by suicide in India (Year: 2011)

Occupational profiles of those who died by suicide in India (Year: 2011)

Percentage share of various states of India in incidence of suicides  (Year: 2011)