We stop smoking. We switch from ice cream cones to sherbet. We take the stairs. As important as these behaviors are to maintaining health, every once in a while we need to remind ourselves that our bodies are more than machines, our minds are more than neurons and gray masses. We humans need meaning in our lives, and we prosper from feelings of connectiveness.
More people kill themselves in the U.S. every year, than are killed by others.
Yes, while there were 26,000 homicides in 1993 there were 31,000 reported suicides. Older white men are more than twice as likely to end their own lives as are older black men. Older white men are five times more likely to commit suicide than are older white women. Reasons for suicide vary. The need for bolstering relationships exist for men as well, but the skills to build and maintain these relationships may not be as well developed.