Suicidal behaviour linked to childhood trauma

Noted psychiatrist Dr Wendel Abel is cautioning that suffering from childhood trauma increases one's risk of suicidal behaviour and suicidal attempts.

September is Suicide Prevention Month, and, according to reports, Jamaica recorded 67 cases of suicide in 2024, the highest figure in 25 years. Of the victims, 61 were men. The Ministry of Health and Wellness also said that calls to its mental health hotlines nearly doubled in recent years, with close to 3,000 calls answered last year.

"Suicidal behaviour is considered mental illness. Whether it's suicidal ideation, thoughts, gestures or actually completing suicide, is based on the mental state. Mental disorders or underlying mental problems lead to suicide, the most common being depression. A lot of people who engage in suicidal behaviour are people who have suffered from childhood trauma," said Abel, who described childhood trauma as a silent killer.

"We pick up the depression and bipolar disorder easily, but a lot of people who have displayed suicidal tendencies have suffered from childhood trauma for years. It's because of the intense pain that they experience over time, destroying them emotionally. It's a big factor in suicide for a lot of people especially sexual abuse," he said.

Dealing with a relative or friend who is living mental illness can be heartbreaking. Jess* is trying to stay connected to a close friend whose mental health has eroded. Although he hardly responds and often zones out when she tries to talk to him, she swears she can still see him in his eyes. At first, she could make no connection.

"I saw him again the other day and I talked to him and it did work out. He was communicating a little so I know that he is still in there somewhere," she said. Jess said that her friend was a track star in his school days.

"He was a runner and we were in the same house. He had his whole life ahead of him. Knowing that life changed for him in a bad way is not a good feeling," she said, urging persons to "be kind and to live good with people because you never know what will happen".

However, Abel added that there is hope for persons who feel as if they have been lost in the grip of mental illness.

"The vast majority of people with mental illness recover," he said. [But] they must accept that they have a problem because a lot of persons and their families go into denial. Because of that, they don't seek help and it is imperative that a person struggling with mental health seeks professional help."

He added, "A lot of people suffer silently, secretly and in shame because of the stigma attached to mental illness. Some people even attribute mental illness to demon possession, and say people obeah them and so they don't seek professional help early."

Jess said that persons have reached out and offered help but her friend's family does not want him in the media.

"So I just have to listen, but I really wish I could help him. I am sure he can come back from this because he is not one that eats or take things from every and anyone. Even in his community he will sit at bars and drink with the man them. He is not fully gone, he is in there somewhere."

*Name changed to protect identity