On this site I see a lot of talk about SI. Could I get some clarification?

[tpboy]

I am a trying to understand if SI is used in the context of kicking in after the beginning of a CBT attempt or is it what make you not want to engage in a CBT attempt in the first place. The two are very different and I am trying to understand.

 

[Dayrain]

SI=Survival Instinct. I don't agree on that the two are very different.

 

[Forever Sleep]

I suppose my understanding is that SI is a reflex type action. Most people wouldn't be able to stick their hand into fire and leave it there. I think when the body knows you're trying to kill it, it likely floods you with adrenalin to frighten you into stopping. For me- I think SI is more about the actual act of doing it and the body fighting back.

Whereas I think if you are having doubts about whether CTB is the right decision, I don't think it's so much to do with instinct. That's more cerebral to my mind. There can be plenty of reasons people think CTB isn't the right choice for them at that time. Maybe they still have a tiny bit of hope they could turn things around, maybe they don't want to upset their loved ones, maybe they're scared of what might happen if the attempt fails. I don't think any of that is to do with the natural instinct to try and survive though. I think that's more of a drawn out thought process weighing up the pro's and cons. When we act on instinct- I don't think we're actually thinking that much at all! It's more of a very strong drive. (To my mind.)

 

[020x]

I also believe its only meaning is reflex, something that your body does automatically without your will, to prevent itself from dying. Everything else is just fear, something that scares you, because you know the consequences of your actions.

 

[Praestat_Mori]

I am a trying to understand if SI is used in the context of kicking in after the beginning of a CBT attempt or is it what make you not want to engage in a CBT attempt in the first place. The two are very different and I am trying to understand.

Most used acronyms on SS:

Acronyms

i hate acronyms, i love tables don't use acronyms, please (this is just for lookup purposes) communication is extremely important (especially here), so don’t take shortcuts: Short Form Delimiter Long Form Notes AE = antiemetic AFAIC = as far as I'm concerned AFAIK = as far as I...

www.sanctioned-suicide.net

 

[bluebus]

Survival Instinct. It's that little, primal part of our selves that protects us from harm. We humans (and any other life that has ever existed) are not made to die easily. Considering our main function is to live, our bodies/ minds are designed to want to live- no matter how much we may want to die. Overcoming this is difficult, but it's the last step to be able to successfully ctb. I really hope I don't have too much trouble with it.

 

[FuneralCry]

The way I see it, the survival instinct is separate from logical thought, one can be fully aware that suicide is what they wish for yet struggle to ctb because of this instinct kicking in and I believe the SI can kick in just before one attempts and during the process, it's certainly like the SI exists just to prolong suffering.

 

[tpboy]

I also believe its only meaning is reflex, something that your body does automatically without your will, to prevent itself from dying. Everything else is just fear, something that scares you, because you know the consequences of your actions.

I would agree with this. However, i see a lot of members interchanging fear of death with SI. That is why i became confused. I do not know this but i would assume that SI...true SI....is the reason that many CTB attempts fail.