Annie*, a vibrant 21-year-old interior designing major, fell to her death from her high-rise condominium in the heart of Bangkok on a Saturday morning. It was the day she was expected to join a family excursion upcountry.
Her family, shell-shocked at the news, were at a loss for words when asked by reporters covering the incident what they felt was the cause of her suicide.
Manus*, 41, an accountant for a law firm, made headlines when he decided to return from work to wipe out his entire family with a revolver he kept for protection. Police said a suicide note blamed his actions on heavy debts.
Suicide has been one of Thailand's most significant ongoing social issues. Earlier this month, the Department of Mental Health released the latest suicide statistics that said six people attempt suicide every hour, an equivalent to 53,000 people a year. What's most worrying is that of this number, an estimated 4,000 people succeeded.
The data further states that the attempted suicide rate in Thailand slightly increased to 6.11 people per hour last year, from 6.03 people per hour in 2017. Mental health disorders like depression, failed relationships and substance abuse are among known factors driving people to take their own lives. Vulnerable groups include individuals with serious financial problems, those suffering with sudden losses of people close to them, people experiencing chronic insomnia and those with a history of attempted suicide.
An increasing number of university students, including ones majoring in psychiatry, are also found to be suffering from depression.
Dr Supara Chaopricha, a psychiatrist and professor, believes one of the most constructive methods to address suicide is through empathy.
"We often miss the fundamental issue here which is attempting to understand the situation the person is experiencing," remarked the veteran psychiatrist. "The conventional approach is all good, but we have to dig deeper into why the situation has traumatised the individual to the point that he or she is convinced there is no other way out of her dilemma.
"One cannot in any manner trivialise issues in a suicidal patient's life, so don't expect them to just snap out of it."
Thai society has to realise that people can find themselves at their lowest emotional state despite having a high education and all the money in the world to spend.
From her 15 years experience in the field of psychiatry, Dr Supara has found that when addressing suicide, it is not enough to just focus on the mental disorders found in the person.
Equally imperative to the healing process, she said, is the need to analyse and understand the patient's state of mind, and let them know you are there for them.
"Empathy is a huge game changer, it can help the person to let down their guard so you can offer them a helping hand to work through their issues."
To successfully help someone struggling with emotional issues, she suggests family members and close friends observe, listen and understand more than judge or ridicule the person.
This, she said, in itself is therapeutic and highly beneficial in offering a lifeline for a troubled mind.
This support group can play a pivotal role in the early detection of a possible mental disorder or emotional anguish a person is experiencing, and if needed can encourage them to seek professional help.
"Only people that are close to you will know the small often chronic signs in you that raise red flags that something is wrong. A problem is often brewing when a person is not able to function properly within the family, work and social environment. Lending a sympathetic ear to the person can be beneficial. Sometimes the issue a person is experiencing isn't serious and all that is needed is a support system of family and friends, which is there to help monitor the behaviour of the individual."
The skill in being able to listen and validate the emotions of the person can play an instrumental role in such a situation because a person often decides to end their life because they have convinced themselves that nobody understands or nobody wants to listen to them, added the psychiatrist.
"We often advise friends that are going through a hard patch to be strong, not to think too much because the problem will eventually be a thing of the past. This we feel will help the person, but in fact, it doesn't address the issue. By telling the person to think positively, we are dismissing or not validating their emotions, which to them is a life crisis."
"So the best method is to just listen and try to understand what they are experiencing," she suggested. "This will help build trust and eventually a relationship between both sides so a dialogue can be created whereby alternatives can be pitched to help the person work through their issues."
Dr Supara believes suicidal tendencies don't necessarily arise due to trigger factors such as financial issues and broken relationships, but a larger more complex spectrum of factors that could include cyber bullying and situations where a person finds themselves emotionally vulnerable.
For individuals who are hesitant to share their problems with others, she recommends they find an outlet that can assist in releasing their tension.
"With all due respect, visiting temples, listening to dhamma preaching and practising meditation to address deep-seated emotional issues is not the solution, at least not for everyone, because what this does is suppress the existing problems further in some patients. To use this practice as a solution, one has to truly understand the practice of dhamma, which let's face it, not many do.
"The best solution to combat emotional issues is self awareness and emotional literacy, which refers to the ability to express one's emotional state and communicate one's feelings. This for starters will help you keep your emotional health in check."
To make her point on just how diverse the reasons for suicide can be, Dr Supara shared a case at her private practice.
"An affluent family recently brought in their young adult son who had attempted suicide. The mother said they have everything, but the son is depressed and tried to end his life because even after a good education in management he failed miserably in setting up his own business a multiple number of times. The parents in this case were made to understand the need to empathise with their son's disappointment over his failure in life to reach his goals.
"Their son prioritised reaching his business goals over the good education he had received and warm and loving family he was born into because this was already there for him.
"Your thinking, mindset, dictates how you feel so it's imperative to self-monitor your emotions if possible. At the end of the day, everyone who is facing a life challenge desires to have choices and alternatives to weather the storms of life."
*not their real names
