OPINION — In my office, a conversation about suicide may start with a patient saying they cannot sleep, a parent mentioning that their teenager has withdrawn from friends or an older adult struggling with pain, illness or the loss of a spouse. None of these concerns necessarily means someone is considering suicide, but each is a reason to ask more questions.
Suicide Prevention Week, Sept. 13-19, gives us a reason to talk about those questions. In 2022, 1,599 Arizonans died by suicide, including 786 people in Maricopa County. According to the Arizona Department of Health Services’ Arizona Suicide Prevention Action Plan 2024-2026, of the statewide deaths, 403 involved adults 65 and older and 46 were children 17 and younger. Nationally, suicide claimed 48,824 lives in 2024. Suicide affects patients and families at every stage of life.
Risk does not look the same from one patient to the next. Factors can include depression or another mental illness, a previous suicide attempt, substance use, chronic pain, financial or legal problems, the loss of a relationship, social isolation, bullying and access to lethal means. Rates are also higher among some groups, including veterans, people in rural communities and workers in industries such as mining and construction. Lesbian, gay and bisexual young people report more suicidal thoughts and behavior than their heterosexual peers.
