Say NO to suicidal thoughts

Life is the most precious gift of God to mankind.

He gives it and only he has the right to take it, as the holy books say.

But there have been cases of people taking their own lives for various reasons.

For some, it is a spur of the moment decision and for others, it is just the accumulation of things in their minds which lead them to taking their own lives. Taking one’s life is known as suicide.

Some people have attempted to commit suicide because they could not handle various problems in their lives but luckily, they survived.

With the World Suicide Prevention Day commemorated yesterday, the Fiji Police Force released statistics on suicides and attempted suicides.

Police statistics show that in 2014, there were 118 cases of suicide and 112 of attempted suicides.

In 2015, there were 124 suicide cases and 107 attempted suicides.

There were 102 suicide cases and 104 attempted suicides in 2016.

Statistics reveal that 106 people took their lives and 119 attempted to do so in 2017.

In 2018, 115 people took their own lives and 98 attempted to do the same.

Most of the suicide and attempted suicide cases in these five years were recorded in the Western Division.

However, statistics for the first eight months of 2019 are quite alarming and if nothing is done, then it could surpass the numbers for the past five years. From January to August, Police have recorded 88 cases of suicide and 82 of attempted suicide.

Yet again, most of these cases have been from the Western Division, followed by the South, North and the East.

Statistics so far this year show that mostly men either committed suicide or attempted to do so.

But then again, why are women also taking their lives or attempting to commit it? Is there a breakdown in the society that we live in?

One of those who attempted to commit suicide and survived revealed her story to this newspaper last night during a vigil held to commemorate the World Suicide Prevention Day.

Since she was 12 years old, she was sexually abused by her biological father for seven years and she decided to take her life.

She made a few attempts to take her life but she survived.

She even went to Saint Giles Hospital eight times because of her state of mind.

Like her, there are others who attempted to take their lives but are now advocating on preventing suicides.

She was lucky to have the support of her family who helped her overcome her suicidal thoughts. But there are others who have no one to fall back on and discuss their problems.

It is here where the loved ones should come in and provide whatever support they can to help save a life although there are some organisations that provide counselling services.

Everyone needs to join hands in a concerted effort to prevent the loss of God’s precious gift to mankind through suicide.

If you are having suicidal thoughts, then it’s time to be strong and say NO!