Careful discharge plans should be made by the hospital team and the family. Sometimes families are not aware that the patient is to be discharged. Divorce of family member or self may be too much to bear. Hearing about a suicide may prompt the action in the person. Feelings of being alone, not having family or other support may influence a person who is already troubled.
Suicide is more likely to happen when the family is away from home leaving the ill person behind.
Persons living alone with few friends and very few visitors have a high incidence of suicide. If this is your situation, visit, phone or mail postcards or greetings cards regularly to keep in contact. Give your relative hope by speaking of the many advances in research and the new medications that will soon be available. People sometimes write poems, notes or other material dwelling on death or suicide when they are contemplating these. An informal study of local suicides prompts one group to suggest being especially vigilant and considerate of your relative in the Spring.