Investigating the Co‐Occurrence of Self‐Mutilation and Suicide Attempts among Opioid‐Dependent Individuals

The prevalence and risk factors associated with self‐mutilation among opioid dependent cases and controls were determined, and the co‐occurrence of self‐mutilation and attempted suicide was examined. The prevalence of self‐mutilation among cases and controls did not differ significantly (25% vs. 23%, respectively), with gender differences identified among cases only. A number of risk factors were found to be associated with self‐mutilation, including borderline personality disorder, alcohol dependence, childhood sexual abuse, and multiple suicide attempts. Not only is self‐mutilation a clinically significant problem, but when combined with a history of attempted suicide, the psychological dysfunction observed is markedly high.     

The Effect of Cancer on Suicide among Elderly Holocaust Survivors

Jewish‐Israelis of European origin with cancer have higher suicide rates relative to their counterparts in the general population. We investigated whether this effect results from the high proportion of Holocaust survivors among them, due to vulnerabilities arising from the earlier traumas they sustained. The study was based on all Jewish‐European persons with cancer, 60 years and over, diagnosed in Israel between 1999 and 2007. The standardized incidence ratios were not significantly different between the exposed and nonexposed groups (men: 0.90, 95% CI 0.60–1.19; women: 0.95, 95% CI 0.55–1.37). Past exposure to maximum adversity did not increase the suicide risk among persons with cancer.     

Creative Moments in Relational-Cultural Therapy

SUMMARY

Creative moments in therapy are those occasions when something new and growth-fostering occurs. This article offers three illustrations and a discussion of these characteristics. It is based on a panel discussion held at the Stone Center-Harvard Medical School/Cambridge Hospital “Learning from Women Conference” in April, 2000.     

Religion and Suicide in Patients with Mental Illness or Cancer

In Switzerland, the highest rates of suicide are observed in persons without religious affiliation and the lowest in Catholics, with Protestants in an intermediate position. We examined whether this association was modified by concomitant psychiatric diagnoses or malignancies, based on 6,909 suicides (ICD‐10 codes X60‐X84) recorded in 3.69 million adult residents 2001–2008. Suicides were related to mental illness or cancer if codes F or C, respectively, were mentioned on the death certificate. The protective effect of religion was substantially stronger if a diagnosis of cancer was mentioned on the death certificate and weaker if a mental illness was mentioned.     

Willingness of Mentally Ill Individuals to Sign Up for a Novel Proposal to Prevent Firearm Suicide

The study goal was to determine whether a significant number of high suicide risk individuals would confidentially put their own names onto a list to prevent future gun purchases. An anonymous written survey was administered in an inpatient psychiatric unit and two outpatient psychiatric clinics at an academic medical center. Two hundred forty individuals were approached to fill out the survey, of whom 200 (83.3%) did so. Forty‐six percent of participants stated that they would put their own name onto the list. This novel suicide prevention proposal, a Do‐Not‐Sell List, would appeal to many people at high risk for suicide.