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The latest research, learnings, and insight on mental health.
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The latest research, learnings, and insight on mental health.
by Christine Morrison, LMHC
Having suicidal thoughts can be terrifying. We can be quick to judge ourselves for these thoughts and to panic at the thought of having them. The first thing to do is to remember thoughts are just thoughts. Everyone has unwanted thoughts and suicidal thoughts are extremely common. You are not alone in dealing with this and you won’t feel this way forever. There are many ways to manage suicidal thoughts and heaps of support out there.
If you feel like the urges are so strong that you might act imminently, the first thing to do is to reach out for some immediate support.
Here are some places you can get support right away:
If you’re feeling safe at the moment but still dealing with pesky thoughts or urges here’s how you can make a plan to manage. Think of this as your own personal recipe for managing suicidal thoughts and urges.
A safety plan is a well thought out plan that can help protect you from acting on a suicidal impulse and give you some relief from bothersome thoughts and urges. There are 5 components of a safety plan that can help do this:
These 5 components are:
Let’s discuss each component in more detail:
Warning signs are the situations, thoughts, moods, and behaviors that lead you to feel suicidal.
Take a moment to think through and/or write down the thoughts, feelings, situations and behaviors that happen before you have the suicidal thoughts or urges. If you can recognize what comes before the thoughts and urges, oftentimes you can avoid or better manage the triggers.
Think about and write down some activities you can use, on your own, to find relief from suicidal urges.
What activities bring you joy, meaning, and distraction from your distress?Also think about how to remove the things that could get in your way of using these activities to cope. Jot down a plan for anything that might prevent you from using the activities you come up with.Reminder: no strategies are too small. Something as simple as a nice smell or playing with a pet can be enough to connect to life.
Social situations provide relief from suicidal thoughts and urges even without you needing to directly discuss your suicidal thoughts.Connecting with friends or family or visiting healthy laid back social settings (coffee shops, busy parks, exercise classes, stores, etc.) can provide relief from suicidal thoughts.When you socialize with friends or family (even without talking about the suicidal situation) you can find some distraction and relief from your suicidal thoughts.Other people create a buffer that can protect you from acting on your plan for suicide.
Think through and write down the people in your life who help you feel good.Think through and write down safe social environments where you can be around other people (a park, watching TV with your family, a coffee shop, etc.)Think through the things that may prevent you from using the social contacts and social situations you listed. Are there ways to remove these blockers? (For example if you couldn’t go to a coffee shop late at night could you text a friend instead)
To help with safety, it ca be useful to directly tell family members, friends, or professionals that you’re experiencing suicidal thoughts.This step is different from “Social Distraction” because you openly tell others you’re experiencing suicidal thoughts.Sharing their thoughts of suicide with a trusted person provides additional relief and opportunity for support.Another person can also help keep you on track with your safety plan.
Take a moment to think through and write down family, friends, or professional supports you could contact for help when you’re feeling suicidal.If you’re actively involved in mental health treatment, come up with a plan to see your mental health provider.Think through and plan for things that might get in the way of reaching out.
If you have easy access to means to complete suicide, the urges may remain strong. Spend some time removing dangerous objects that could be used to harm yourself.By doing this, you create a buffer that helps prevent acting on suicidal urges. You might ask a friend to store extra medication or give car keys to a family member until suicidal urges are managed.
Once you’ve thought through and written down these 5 components you have your safety plan ready to go. Keep it handy- folded up in your wallet, take a photo or store it in the notes app of your phone, or tape it up somewhere that will be easily accessible if the thoughts creep up.
Remember that the thoughts and urges will pass. You don’t have to cope alone.
