Loving Someone with Suicidal Thoughts by Stacey Freedenthal

Author:Stacey Freedenthal
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: New Harbinger Publications
Published: 2022-11-16T23:23:49+00:00

Where to Go in an Emergency

Hospital emergency rooms aren’t just for heart attacks, strokes, and life-threatening injuries. They’re equipped to deal with psychiatric emergencies, too. Some cities also have walk-in crisis centers for mental health problems or specially designated psychiatric emergency services that are open twenty-four hours a day. Emergency rooms typically have a security guard or “sitter” stay near someone who’s waiting to be evaluated for suicidal thoughts, to prevent the person from leaving or attempting suicide. Some places are locked, so patients can’t leave on their own accord. Someone with suicidal thoughts can go to an emergency room alone, come with a support person, or call 988 or 911 for emergency help.

Be prepared. Your loved one might wait hours for treatment in the emergency room. Consider writing in your journal now what you might need to bring to keep both of you occupied, just in case. Think of chargers for cell phones and other electronics, reading materials, snacks, bottles of water, and a comfortable jacket or sweater—for each of you. What else?

Another challenge: While most doctors, nurses, and other health care professionals treat suicidal patients with respect, some respond with hostility. In various studies, staff blame these negative reactions on overwork, burnout, feelings of helplessness, and fear of liability (O’Keeffe et al. 2021). Some health care professionals resent suicidal patients for trying to die when so many dying patients yearn to live. These attitudes can do harm to individuals with suicidal thoughts and their caregivers, as Estelle’s experience shows:

I took my son to the hospital after he attempted suicide. A doctor was giving him stitches and said, “If you really want to die, do it right and save us the time.” I was horrified. Without even thinking, I said, “If you really want to hurt people, get a different job.” The doctor apologized, but nothing could make my son un-hear what he’d said.

Estelle emphatically conveyed to her son that his suicidal thoughts were not his fault and, instead, were a medical problem deserving of respectful treatment. Rude, hurtful remarks typically reflect a health professional’s ignorance of mental illness, stress, or other dynamics beyond a suicidal person’s control. This gap is the professional’s flaw, not the patient’s.

Emergency rooms don’t provide ongoing care. This visit is a chance for staff to assess your loved one, prescribe medications, and—hopefully, but it depends on the ER—collaboratively create a safety plan and arrange an appointment with a mental health professional. Alternatively, if your loved one requires twenty-four-hour monitoring, the emergency room staff will arrange for psychiatric hospitalization.

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