Is Suicide on the Rise in this world?

[blessed2]

YES!!.....I am horrified at the number of suicides and suicide attempts!

I work in a small rural hospital emergency room. The county ambulance is dispatched from our hospital. There is an astonishing rise in suicides in our area.

The depressed and suicidal walk through our doors daily.Many seem to be methamphetamine addicts.We have had 3 different occasions of teenagers hanging themselves,which is generally a very unusual way to kill oneself,esp.among this age group.(in the last 18months-2yrs or so).This needs our attention christians.

Our rural area is FULL of meth labs and they are springing up all over the U.S.!

Recipes for making methamphetamines can be found on the internet.Meth labs are found in garages or homes or even in trunks of cars.Rural areas are perferred since this meth is highly toxic and sends out strong oders when being made,that is less likely to be detected in rural areas .My son says so frequently,that another friend is on meth.Last we we had a funeral for a young man(20's)that commited suicide by shooting himself in the head.My son said that when he was in high school ,this young man was not known to be a person that used drugs.His best friend is a buddie of my son,and he told my son that he had recently been using meth.My son says that all would agree,that if it were not for the meth, he would not have killed himself.I could tell you so many stories i have been told by those that are addicted to meth. This isn't anything to mess around with.Most say they were addicted to this drug from the very first 'high'.Most if not all will say they wished they never even tried it .

This 'spirit'called meth causes significant brain damage.meth causes a surge of a chemical in your brain called dopamine.This surge creates an intense, long-lasting high.Dopamine is then depleted and when you come down off this high ,it is more like a CRASH! The only thing that eleviates this 'crash' is another 'high'.One continues to chase that feeling like they had with their first high,just to feel normal again.When I say 'crash',I mean a strong feeling of hopelessness,depression ands suicidal thoughts like you have never experienced before.Meth also makes you paranoid,Extremly paranoid.They often times think their best friends or the mailman is a 'DEA'.Strange behaviors are exhibited when using meth.

I am surprised our hospital knows very little about the effects of meth even though we know the problem is there.

I found a excellent website called'mothers against meth-amphetamine'or'mama' www.mamasite.net

Meth is a spirit ,and I believe God is raising up an army for this battle as well.With Gods power and our prayers,thru Jesus Christ,We will conqeur this enemy!!!

THERE IS HOPE!!! I HAVE FRIENDS THAT HAVE BEEN FREED FROM METH ,WHILE LEARNING OF WHAT A LOVING AND GRACIOUS SAVIOR WE HAVE .HE HAS THE POWER TO FREE ALL FROM THIS HORRIBLE SNARE!!PRAISE GOD!!

The website has good educational materials.Materials are free if distributed to prisons.Some is free to all.Some requests a donation to cover shipping etc. Does your schools,churches,hospitals,clinics,homeless shelters etc. have material on hand to educate with?

I would be interested to know if your local hospital workers have seen a dramatic increase in suicide or attemted suicides.Do you know any police officers that might share their observations or experiences.I think some of you may be shocked at learning just how big this problem is that seems to get little attention in our communities and from the media.

Thank you and Gods grace and peace be with you. blessed2

Edited December 24, 2004 by blessed2

[Guest BillyBass]

As a younger person who's gone through several bouts of depression I'd like to try to show my perspective on the matter.

I don't think that drugs, violence, alcohol abuse, sex are the problem. To me they seem to be results. The problem, I think, is embedded somewhere in the communal psyche. It's in every advertisement and television programme. It's hopelessness, pure and simple.

Listen to the popular music, it has a depressive edge to it that is no longer moderated by the thin rays of hope. The culture that young people are immersed in is obsessed with immediate gain and invisible consequences. Cold technology and science courses are clogging the arteries in the educational brain of the world, the decline of art in schools is just helping the inevitable stroke along. The hope that was supposed to be science and technology has turned out to be empty, the bright beacon of hope no more than a cheap flashbulb. The future was always supposed to be better for us, but now that it's here we feel cheated, rejected.

The future that we inherited is polluted, cancerous, illuminated by the energy efficient glare of overhead fluorescent lights and CRTs. We're taught that we're worthless unless we have the newest fashions, cellphones, cars. We're taught that joy comes from cold devices, one night stands and drugs; and that love is an outdated concept. The immediate joys of greed, lust and exotic chemicals require constant stimulation to stay high, the lows can be filled with the meaningless drivel that we call entertainment, which does nothing more than to dull the pain until we can get another high. We've become addicts, slaves to the last feeble embers of joy that we can only get from faceless corporations, sadistic dealers and soulless lust. We have no future to look forward to besides the cold respite of death. Many choose to simply skip the hell that is the life of the youth and go straight to whatever paradise they believe is coming. The misery of existence is such that many believe that the horrors of hell can't hold a candle to their pain and suffering.

This is only a small portion of the problem, and I can't see a solution, immediate or otherwise.