Parasuicide
Encyclopedia
Parasuicide refers to suicide attempts or gestures and self-harm
where there is no result in death. It is a non-fatal act in which a person deliberately causes injury to himself or ingests any prescribed or generally recognised therapeutic dose in excess. The term was first coined in Edinburgh by Norman Krietman
It is considered to be a serious public health
issue. Parasuicide is the strongest known indicator for a future successful suicide attempt. Other researchers also include those who attempt suicide with the intent to kill themselves in the definition of parasuicide. Studies have found that about half of those who commit suicide have a history of parasuicide. Parasuicide is most common in adolescents
and young adults.
in that, in self-harm, the person's primary intention is to relieve unbearable emotions, sensations of unreality, or feelings of numbness by injuring their body. Suicidal gestures are typically done to alert others of the seriousness of the individual's clinical depression
and suicidal ideation
, and are usually treated as actual suicide attempts by hospital staff. Some suicidal gestures do lead to death, despite the individual not having the intention of dying. Studies show that 1% of patients who self-harm will commit suicide within two years of the first act.
It is often an atypical act undertaken by a person hoping to elicit a reaction from a friend or family member.
s are preceded by an attempt at suicide that does not end in death. Those with a history of such attempts are 23 times more likely to eventually end their own lives than those without.
Those who attempt to harm themselves are, as a group, quite different from those who actually die from suicide; females attempt suicide much more frequently than males do, but males are four times more likely to die from suicide. The incidence of parasuicide ranges from as low as 2.6 to as high as 1,100 per 100,000 people per year. The lifetime incidence of parasuicide has been estimated as low as 720 and as high as 5,930 per 100,000 people. Parasuicide is more likely to occur in younger people and females. Other risk factors include being single or being divorced, unemployment, recent change in living condition, mental illness, ill health and a past history of parasuicide. Substance abuse, especially alcohol, is highly associated with parasuicide.
One study found that perfectionism
could be a factor in parasuicide. A high level of perfectionism was found in patients that had been hospitalised for parasuicide and the study suggests that perfectionism is more likely to lead to feelings of failure, therefore making a suicide attempt or parasuicide more likely.
Self-harm
Self-harm or deliberate self-harm includes self-injury and self-poisoning and is defined as the intentional, direct injuring of body tissue most often done without suicidal intentions. These terms are used in the more recent literature in an attempt to reach a more neutral terminology...
where there is no result in death. It is a non-fatal act in which a person deliberately causes injury to himself or ingests any prescribed or generally recognised therapeutic dose in excess. The term was first coined in Edinburgh by Norman Krietman
Norman Krietman
Norman Kreitman is a well-known psychiatric researcher in Edinburgh who is primarily known for coining the term parasuicide.-References:.....
It is considered to be a serious public health
Public health
Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals" . It is concerned with threats to health based on population health...
issue. Parasuicide is the strongest known indicator for a future successful suicide attempt. Other researchers also include those who attempt suicide with the intent to kill themselves in the definition of parasuicide. Studies have found that about half of those who commit suicide have a history of parasuicide. Parasuicide is most common in adolescents
Adolescence
Adolescence is a transitional stage of physical and mental human development generally occurring between puberty and legal adulthood , but largely characterized as beginning and ending with the teenage stage...
and young adults.
Suicidal gestures
Examples of suicidal gestures include cutting, whereby the cut is not deep enough to cause significant blood loss, or taking a non-lethal overdose of medication. This differs from self-harmSelf-harm
Self-harm or deliberate self-harm includes self-injury and self-poisoning and is defined as the intentional, direct injuring of body tissue most often done without suicidal intentions. These terms are used in the more recent literature in an attempt to reach a more neutral terminology...
in that, in self-harm, the person's primary intention is to relieve unbearable emotions, sensations of unreality, or feelings of numbness by injuring their body. Suicidal gestures are typically done to alert others of the seriousness of the individual's clinical depression
Clinical depression
Major depressive disorder is a mental disorder characterized by an all-encompassing low mood accompanied by low self-esteem, and by loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities...
and suicidal ideation
Suicidal ideation
Suicidal ideation is a common medical term for thoughts about suicide, which may be as detailed as a formulated plan, without the suicidal act itself. Although most people who undergo suicidal ideation do not commit suicide, some go on to make suicide attempts...
, and are usually treated as actual suicide attempts by hospital staff. Some suicidal gestures do lead to death, despite the individual not having the intention of dying. Studies show that 1% of patients who self-harm will commit suicide within two years of the first act.
It is often an atypical act undertaken by a person hoping to elicit a reaction from a friend or family member.
Epidemiology
Nearly half of all suicideSuicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
s are preceded by an attempt at suicide that does not end in death. Those with a history of such attempts are 23 times more likely to eventually end their own lives than those without.
Those who attempt to harm themselves are, as a group, quite different from those who actually die from suicide; females attempt suicide much more frequently than males do, but males are four times more likely to die from suicide. The incidence of parasuicide ranges from as low as 2.6 to as high as 1,100 per 100,000 people per year. The lifetime incidence of parasuicide has been estimated as low as 720 and as high as 5,930 per 100,000 people. Parasuicide is more likely to occur in younger people and females. Other risk factors include being single or being divorced, unemployment, recent change in living condition, mental illness, ill health and a past history of parasuicide. Substance abuse, especially alcohol, is highly associated with parasuicide.
One study found that perfectionism
Perfectionism (psychology)
Perfectionism, in psychology, is a belief that a state of completeness and flawlessness can and should be attained. In its pathological form, perfectionism is a belief that work or output that is anything less than perfect is unacceptable...
could be a factor in parasuicide. A high level of perfectionism was found in patients that had been hospitalised for parasuicide and the study suggests that perfectionism is more likely to lead to feelings of failure, therefore making a suicide attempt or parasuicide more likely.