What's the difference?

[Weather]

What's the difference between those who choose recovery and those who do not? I know most people have tried some sort of help/recovery at some point (meds, talking to someone, life changes, etc.), but it seems like there are some people who keep trying recovery, or return to recovery (even if it seems like beating your head against a wall), and those who do not. Is it a difference in diagnosis, history, environmental factors... or just some unknown internal factor? It feels like some people have a foundational commitment to suicide -- like a biological imperative almost -- and some do not.

I read some folks' posts and think that we are likely similar in many ways, yet I contemplate suicide seriously only in particularly dark times while it seems for them it's a companion, a foregone conclusion. I don't know that there's a right answer, certainly not a universal answer... just something I was thinking about.

 

[Nymph]

I definitely think that I was born to commit suicide lmao (born to dielove that song)
I haven't tried too many recovery methods but I'm just constantly suicidal and in pain even for little things, even when I'm supposed to be happy or when everything is "fine". I just want to die

 

[timf]

Hope or even the possibility of hope keeps some trying recovery. Others may fear a botched attempt making things even worse. Also there are different circumstances surrounding considering suicide. Some are event driven like divorce, being sentenced to prison, the death of a child, etc. Some are a loss of a foundation such as getting out of military service and finding nowhere to fit in. Some are related to depression or mental health issues.

It may be helpful to consider each situation. For example, telling someone facing an event driven cause that it will get better as time passes, might not be as helpful for someone else who is dealing with an ongoing medical situation.

If you have periodic depression that gets pretty dark, you may wish to investigate medication or nutritional supplements. Experimentation can be useful to attempt to discover what might help you manage things.

 

[Deleted member 1465]

Some people will slog on regardless of what happens to them whilst some will fade even if everything goes well in life. I think it's such a complex subject, with so many variables, that it would be impossible to say what causes a particular attitude in any given situation. Circumstances, genetics, environmental factors. I'd even go on to say that even though their might be a preponderance of a particular causal factor, it's probably not that simple, and many factors may coincide to provoke an individual's tendency.
Take depression.
Existential depression, circumstantial depression and chronic depression.
I'd suggest that all these go hand in hand and it's unrealistic to be able to identify a causal factor in most cases. A sufferer with a genetic preponderance towards chronic depression, might for example have been high functioning if his or her life hadn't collapsed. Often that sort of thing can lead to someone perceiving that all life is futile due to the very nature of things. All this can then feedback and reinforce a pre-existing tendency. So what was the actual cause of feeling suicidal?
This isn't really an answer, but then that's because I don't think there is really a clear answer.

Edit: I'd add that this is where potential misunderstanding by the medical profession may creep in. Depression is known to correlate with relative depletion of certain neurotransmitters in the brain. But correlation does not imply causality. However, they act as if it does and attempt to modulate those neurotransmitter levels to alleviate depression.

 

[VivaldiBR]

What's the difference between those who choose recovery and those who do not? I know most people have tried some sort of help/recovery at some point (meds, talking to someone, life changes, etc.), but it seems like there are some people who keep trying recovery, or return to recovery (even if it seems like beating your head against a wall), and those who do not. Is it a difference in diagnosis, history, environmental factors... or just some unknown internal factor? It feels like some people have a foundational commitment to suicide -- like a biological imperative almost -- and some do not.

I read some folks' posts and think that we are likely similar in many ways, yet I contemplate suicide seriously only in particularly dark times while it seems for them it's a companion, a foregone conclusion. I don't know that there's a right answer, certainly not a universal answer... just something I was thinking about.

I think exactly the same thing.