Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Ottawa, Canada (CNN) -- The family of a teenager who committed suicide after she was allegedly gang-raped and bullied is urging Canadian officials to reconsider filing criminal charges.
Authorities confirmed that a photograph allegedly showing Parsons having sex with one of the boys was circulated to friends' mobile phones and computers. As a result, her family said she developed suicidal thoughts.
She also struggled emotionally after the police investigation ended without criminal charges, her mother, Leah Parsons, wrote on her Facebook tribute page.
Monday, January 21, 2013
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Friday, January 11, 2013
Tuesday, January 08, 2013
"At first fans thought that the tweets might be a promotional stunt. Freddie's death was later confirmed by his family. They released this statement:
"Today, our son, Frederick Eugene Buhl, age 22 years old, took his own life with a rifle shot to the head.""
Friday, February 03, 2012
suicidal bears?
Bears held captive in bile farms often go on hunger strikes, their only means of escape from the conditions.
http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/stories/are-bears-purposely-committing-suicide-to-protest-the-horror-of-bile-f
Monday, January 30, 2012
It became widely understood that a closeted student at Rutgers had committed suicide after video of him having sex with a man was secretly shot and posted online. In fact, there was no posting, no observed sex, and no closet. But last spring, shortly before Molly Wei made a deal with prosecutors, Ravi was indicted on charges of invasion of privacy (sex crimes), bias intimidation (hate crimes), witness tampering, and evidence tampering. Bias intimidation is a sentence-booster that attaches itself to an underlying crime—usually, a violent one. Here the allegation, linked to snooping, is either that Ravi intended to harass Clementi because he was gay or that Clementi felt he’d been harassed for being gay. Ravi is not charged in connection with Clementi’s death, but he faces a possible sentence of ten years in jail. As he sat in the courtroom, his chin propped awkwardly on his fist, his predicament could be seen either as a state’s admirably muscular response to the abusive treatment of a vulnerable young man or as an attempt to criminalize teen-age odiousness by using statutes aimed at people more easily recognizable as hate-mongers and perverts.
Read more http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/02/06/120206fa_fact_parker#ixzz1kyMzsfa7
Thursday, January 19, 2012
1 In 5 U.S. Adults Had Mental Illness Last Year
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/19/mental-illness-united-states_n_1216575.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003
http://www.samhsa.gov/data/NSDUH/2k10MH_Findings/
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Sinead O'Connor Recovering From Suicide Attempt, Pleads For Help On Twitter
..The 45-year-old, recently made waves after announcing she and husband of 18-days, Irish therapist Barry Herridge were splitting up, only to announce days later they were reuniting. The singer, who suffers from bipolar disorder had attempted suicide on her 33rd birthday in 1999.
...after being treated in an Irish hospital for a broken ankle she nearly tried to kill herself again just two days later, and said of her pleas on Twitter, "I just had to make a cry for help."
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
300 Chinese Foxconn Workers 'Threaten Mass Suicide' At XBox Plant
Wednesday, August 03, 2011
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
don't like this lady one bit
http://motherjones.com/politics/2011/07/michele-bachmann-teen-suicide
Thursday, January 27, 2011
More U.S. Soldiers Killed Themselves Than Died in Combat in 2010
Please read. For the second year in a row now, more American soldiers committed suicide than were killed in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
"While many suicide victims are indeed afflicted with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder after facing heavy combat in the Middle East, many more have never even been deployed. Of the 112 guardsmen who committed suicide last year, more than half had never even left American soil."
http://www.good.is/post/more-us-soldiers-killed-themselves-than-died-in-combat-in-2010/
Thursday, March 04, 2010
Teen girls’ apparent suicide pact stuns Pa. town
On the snowy morning of Feb. 25, police say Gentile and a friend cut class with the intention of killing themselves. They walked the two blocks to the Norwood regional rail station, where Dorwart — who had stayed home that day — met up with them.
About 1 percent of suicides result from pacts, most of which are between older, partnered adults who have endured a recent hardship, said Brian Daly, an assistant professor of public health at Temple University.
Monday, March 01, 2010
2 dead in apparent murder-suicide at Va. day care
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Entertainment Tonight reports teen battled severe depression
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35619717/ns/entertainment-celebrities/
Monday, February 22, 2010
Saturday, January 23, 2010
State police discovered the body of Dean Pierson, 59, in his Copake barn on Thursday. A visitor found a note Pierson had left on the barn door that said not to come in and to call police.
State police would only say that Pierson was having personal issues, the Register-Star reported.
Monday, January 18, 2010
DJ plays ‘Jump’ as woman mulls suicide
LONDON - A British radio DJ is being criticized for playing Van Halen's "Jump" as police tried to talk a suicidal woman down from a highway bridge last week.
A British mental health charity said it was horrified by the incident Thursday morning, and would bring it up with Britain's media regulator
Monday, December 14, 2009
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Tuesday, December 08, 2009
been MIA/busy the past month
SYDNEY - Teenagers who are addicted to the Internet are more likely to engage in self-harm behavior, according to an Australian-Chinese study.
Researchers surveyed 1,618 adolescents aged 13 to 18 from China's Guangdong Province about behavior such as hitting themselves, pulling their own hair, or pinching or burning themselves, and gave them a test to gauge Internet addiction.
Monday, November 09, 2009
Sunday, November 01, 2009
talk2me
Those efforts are moving with greater urgency since the most recent suicide on Oct. 19 that involved a 16-year-old male student at Henry M. Gunn High School. Two other Gunn students, a 17-year-old boy in May and a 17-year-old girl a month later, also took their own lives on the train tracks. A 13-year-old girl died the same way in August, days before she was to become a Gunn freshman. At least one Gunn student, another 17-year-old boy, was prevented from killing himself in June after his mother followed him to the tracks.
"There is no single answer. There is not necessarily a cumulative set of answers either," said Greg Hermann, a spokesman for Palo Alto, which convened a task force of psychologists, clergy and others to prepare a response plan. "There are intelligent steps we can be taking."
read more..
Some of the high school's 1,900 students also have created T-shirts with the message "Talk to Me" and formed pacts not to harm themselves. One student left bracelets made of heart-shaped walnut shells for others in need of cheering up to find. A group posts optimistic notes around campus.
I have thoughts on this but I need to write my lesson plan....
Mostly I just thought it was really important that students from the school were getting together to make t-shirts that said "Talk to Me" and vowed not to harm themselves.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Hulk Hogan talks about his depression
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Children never were what they were part2
I really responded to this sentence in the first page of Duncan's essay. It states a lot about the type of information that is readily available to children in this day and age. In addition to children going through abuse, often these abused children are the ones most at risk for violent tenancies against themselves or others. We may never know what drives an adolescent to take their own life, but we can piece together various events from their own life, as well as their family to somehow find some closure.
Michael Jackson came forth in 1993 and spoke of his own experience with child abuse. This quote is pretty relevant when you think about Jackson's Neverland Ranch and interactions with children. Children as friends, which is also the type of relationships that Lewis Carroll (Charles Dodgson) had when he was writing stories and photographing.
"..adults often construct ideal childhoods for themselves where childhood is viewed through the lens of a warm nostalgic glow. Where one's childhood has involved abuse of deprivation of some kind of childhood as an ideal is oftentimes created with particular strength." p.102 (Bradshaw, 1990)
Jackson began making music when he was 11. He gained stardom almost immediately, thus, giving up the rest of his childhood for fame and success. I do believe this greatly affected Jackson as an adult. He was deprived from social interactions with children his age aside from screaming fans (which are not the same as friends.) After Jackson's death, I watched many hours of interviews with his friends and family. I remember one in particular, where whoever was speaking said that during Jackson's early career, fans would come to the family's house to "hang out".
more later?
Friday, October 23, 2009
Children never were what they were
When I took history of photo a few years back, I wrote a paper on Charles Dodgson's work and the way he portrayed children with an almost adult-like quality. In exchange for him taking their photographs, Dodgson wrote stories for the children, which in Alice Liddel's case, came Through the Looking Glass.
Let me cite myself as a source...
"Much of Lewis Carroll’s photography, as well as his writings include a strong feeling of nostalgia. Perhaps this is a sense of never wanting to grow up, and trying to remain young forever, which is apparent in his children’s stories and poems, as well as his photography. Throughout Carroll’s own childhood, he entertained his classmates by building marionettes and performed conjuring tricks, and continued to have a strong relationship with various child friends later on in life. Carroll had a great eye for the beauty around him and even said that “..For I confess, I do not admire the naked boys in pictures. They always seem… to need clothes: whereas one hardly see why the lovely forms of girls should ever be covered up!” (Cohen, p.229, paragraph 3). Some may find this oddly creepy coming from a grown man, but Carroll considered these children as his friends, and he knew their parents as well."
After rereading the paper I wrote on Charles Dodgson's work, I mentioned about how he often had children sign the photograph he had taken of them. The signature itself gives life and a time line to the subject of the photo. Though these girls are in more mature poses, the signature reminds the viewer of the actual age of the subject.
This similar effect of children taking adult roles appears in Lewis Hine's work, where he documents the work conditions of children in factories in the 1800s.
I'll come back to this later with more thoughts..
Thursday, October 22, 2009
googgled "post secret suicide"
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
The Dispute Between a Man and his Ba
This leads me to believe that:
Monday, October 12, 2009
preventing youth suicide: tips for parents and educators
What to Do
Youth who feel suicidal are not likely to seek help directly; however, parents, school personnel, and peers can recognize the warning signs and take immediate action to keep the youth safe. When a youth gives signs that they may be considering suicide, the following actions should be taken:
- Remain calm.
- Ask the youth directly if he or she is thinking about suicide.
- Focus on your concern for their wellbeing and avoid being accusatory.
- Listen.
- Reassure them that there is help and they will not feel like this forever.
- Do not judge.
- Provide constant supervision. Do not leave the youth alone.
- Remove means for self-harm.
- Get help: Peers should not agree to keep the suicidal thoughts a secret and instead should tell an adult, such as a parent, teacher, or school psychologist. Parents should seek help from school or community mental health resources as soon as possible. School staff should take the student to the designated school mental health professional or administrator.
The Role of the School in Suicide Prevention
Children and adolescents spend a substantial part of their day in school under the supervision of school personnel. Effective suicide and violence prevention is integrated with supportive mental health services, engages the entire school community, and is imbedded in a positive school climate through student behavioral expectations and a trustful student/adult relationship. Therefore, it is crucial for all school staff to be familiar with and watchful for risk factors and warning signs of suicidal behavior. The entire school staff should work to create an environment where students feel safe sharing such information. School psychologists and other crisis team personnel, including the school counselor and school administrator, are trained to intervene when a student is identified at risk for suicide. These individuals conduct suicide risk assessment, warn/inform parents, provide recommendations and referrals to community services, and often provide follow up counseling and support at school.
columbine mother speaks out
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
and Matt comments about how some people might say "how could you miss the warning signs"
What do you think?
Sunday, October 11, 2009
suicide scene from the Royal Tennebaums
One of them was singer/songwriter Elliott Smith.
His song "Needle in the Hay" is used in this scene from the Royal Tennebaums.
Jack Kevorkian aka Dr. Death
He became famous in the 1990s for his "death machine," a device he invented that allowed a user to self-inject an anesthetic and then a lethal dose of potassium chloride. (He called the machine a thanatron, after Thanatos, the figure of death in Greek mythology.) His initial "assisted suicides" led to a 1993 Michigan law that specifically prohibited him from continuing, a law he openly defied in an effort to force the issue into the courts.
For most of the 1990s Kevorkian -- now widely known as "Dr. Death" -- was on TV talk shows, in the news and in and out of court (and jail) for his role in a number of deaths. In September of 1998 he videotaped the death of Thomas Youk; the tape was broadcast by CBS television's 60 Minutes in November, and Kevorkian ended up on trial again, charged with murder and the delivery of a controlled substance. (Having lost his licenses to practice medicine in California and Michigan, Kevorkian's use of potassium chloride was illegal.) He was convicted in April of 1999 and sentenced to 10-25 years in prison. Denied parole in 2005, Kevorkian, in failing health, was granted parole at the end of 2006 and released in 2007. Supporters argue that -- idiosyncrasies aside -- Kevorkian is a hero who helped more than 130 terminally ill people end their own lives with dignity. Critics say he is a weirdo who exploited sick and disabled people for his own morbid experiments. Either way, he gets credit for bringing the issue forward into public debate. After his release from prison he settled outside of Detroit, and in 2008 he announced his intention to run for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Kevorkian used to advertise himself as a "death consultant," and he dubbed his field "obitiatry"... He says he first got the nickname "Dr. Death" in 1956, for his research in photographing the eyes of dying patients... Kevorkian used carbon monoxide gas when he was unable to procure potassium chloride... Many of Kevorkian's clients passed away in his 1968 Volkswagen bus, which he had rigged for his equipment.
from http://www.answers.com/topic/jack-kevorkian
assisted suicide
My dad has told us that if he is ever in this sort of condition where he is hanging by a thread and the family's money is going to keep him alive, to pull the plug. He has a (unofficial) signed document that gives permission for him to keep on trucking. I feel this is noble in his sense, thinking about his family's life during this period. And if there is no recovery, why put a burden on the family.
I recently read Chuck Palahniuk's novel Diary, in which the main character's husband attempts suicide by leaving his car running in the garage. His plan fails, and he is left at a vegetative state.
how can we fix this?
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33257356/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/
What are the warning signs of suicide?
What if there are no warning signs?
From WebMD:
Most people who seriously consider or attempt suicide have one or more of the following risks:
- A personal or family history of suicide attempts
- A family history of suicide attempts or completed suicide
- A personal or family history of severe anxiety, depression, or other mental health problem, such as bipolar disorder (manic-depressive illness) or schizophrenia
- An alcohol or drug problem (substance abuse problem), such as alcoholism
The warning signs of suicide change with age.
- Warning signs of suicide in children and teens may include preoccupation with death or suicide or a recent breakup of a relationship.
- Warning signs of suicide in adults may include alcohol or substance abuse, recent job loss, or divorce.
- Warning signs of suicide in older adults may include the recent death of a partner or diagnosis of a life-limiting illness.
Anytime someone talks about suicide or about wanting to die or disappear, even in a joking manner, the conversation must be taken seriously. A suicide attempt-even if the attempt did not harm the person-also must be taken seriously. Don't be afraid to talk to someone you think may be considering suicide. There is no evidence that talking about suicide leads to suicidal thinking or suicide. Once you know the person's thoughts on the subject, you may be able to help prevent a suicide.
WebMD also goes more in depth of the warning signs of suicide in children, teens, adults, and older adults.Thursday, October 08, 2009
currently
This book gives several in depth stories of the lives of adolescents and the events that led them to their downfall.
I have read two stories so far. The first story tells about a boy named Justin who had been picked on (Sean, this is up your alley) since he began attending school. He had trouble making friends at school, and when he did have friends, he mostly associated with what would be stereotyped as "the outcasts". In high school, Justin got very involved with Dungeons and Dragons (Keelin mentioned in class how video games / role playing games are almost a modern version of this). Justin eventually started having more difficulties in high school, but in English class, he was passionate about his acting role as Julius Caesar. His parents worked a lot (his dad commuted from Manhattan) so often he would be alone with his sister for most of the day and had to cook his own dinner. On Valentines day, many students in his class received carnations from friends. Justin did not receive one. Later that evening he went out to play with a friend in the neighborhood and never came back. His parents and neighbors went looking for him and found him hanging from a tree.
I particularly was interested in Justin's story because the details it gave about the way the school handled the situation. Many students heard on the radio that Justin had died last night. Many did not believe it, and others couldn't care and it almost didn't phase them. The school went into crisis mode, and made counseling available to EVERY student who needed it, seeing them one at a time. Each counselor (the superintendent sent over two additional ones) spoke to every class about Justin's death and answer questions.
I've talked about how mentally unstable I was during this time period. Each February 9th is strange for me. Almost everyone other person I have know that died was old or sick, or it wasn't much of a surprise that they would pass.
*There was an instance when I was 16. I was getting ready for school and heard a helicopter outside my window. Living a mile from the DC border, this usually did not phase me, but something was off about this time. It was particularly close to our house, at one point I started to think the cops were after me..
I went downstairs ready to walk to the bus stop, and my mom was crying. "Tre and his mother died.. They were stabbed in their sleep by a woman who was living with them."
What.... the... fuck... I'm starting to tear up as I recall this sunny spring day getting ready for school.
Tre was a boy in my neighborhood. He was adopted by an older woman. We knew them, what we thought was pretty well. My brother and Tre went to elementary and middle school together. At this time, my brother was 11 and I believe so was Tre. Tre was always a little bit off, but we thought that was just how his energetic personality. After his death, my brother had mentioned something about Tre saying he was hit or abused by his mother's roommate. At this point, we should address looking for warning signs, and often many are more visible by students because most of their time is spent at school.
When my sister and I got to the bus stop, many of the kids there didn't know about what happened. So we told them. There were comments about Tre and his behavior and I just remember being really upset and yelling about how it didn't matter how he acted, but that he was dead, killed by someone who lived with him.
I thought it was important to include this satellite photo from GoogleMaps just to show exactly how close this was to my parent's house in Silver Spring, MD.
for further reading:
http://www.gazette.net/gazette_archive/2004/200415/silverspring/news/210510-1.html
Wednesday, October 07, 2009
Tuesday, October 06, 2009
from the final chapter of GONZO
p.412 "I never had any doubt that at some point he was going to commit suicide. That's how he was going to die, baring some strange illness or a car crash or something like that. As long as it was in his control, I knew that he was going to kill himself."
p.413 "When he finally did choose to kill himself, he was very careful not to let on. I think he'd made a decision and he didn't want to put me or anyone in a position of trying to stop him. It would have put a horrible burden on somebody."
Doug Brinkley:
p.416 "Hunter had always talked about suicide, but it was very, very low in his playing deck."
Laila Nabulsi:
p.420 "Hunter started saying good-bye to people differently when they'd visit him or when he talked to them on the phone. I talked to Hunter a week before he died. There was definitely a good-bye about it."
Juan Thompson:
p.423 "He told me to take some family mementos - some silver julep cups that are traditional in Kentucky, engraved with his name and some names of his family members; a clock that had belonged to his mother. He also pointed to the medallion that Oscar Acosta had given him and told me, "When I die, I want you to have this."
He was wearing the emerald pendant that he wore pretty much all the time, and he told me that when he died, if he and Anita were on good terms he wanted her to have the emerald."
p.425 "He very deliberately did not have a final good-bye. He didn't want to let on. It was a really nice afternoon. He was reading the paper and me and Jen were reading, and I was taking a picture of something for Jen, and I think he just decided that that was the moment. I think he'd been hanging in there for a long time and just got tired of it.
I was in the back office when he pulled the trigger. Jennifer and Will were in the living room. I ran into the living room to get Jennifer, and left Will in the living room. We were trying to find the sheriff's phone number. It was terrifying."
Bob Braudis:
p.426 "After Hunter died, Anita found a page from his spiral notebook where Hunter used to start his writing. This was titled "Football season is over." It read, "No More Games. No More Bombs. No More Walking. No More Fun. No More Swimming. 67. That is 17 years past 50. 17 more than I needed or wanted. Boring. I am always bitchy. No Fun - for anybody. You are getting Greedy. Act your old age. Relax - This won't hurt."
It was dated the last night I was with him, four night prior."
Deborah Fuller:
p.432 "Hunter shooting himself did not surprise me. I always felt that he was in charge of his life and knew that he would be in charge of his death and when he chose that path."
Daniel Johnston "Funeral Home"
I actually like this version of the song a lot better.
Daniel's love of his life married an undertaker.. so that's what this song is about.
maybe watch this one too..
FYI: Daniel Johnston is playing in DC next Tuesday and I would give anything to go but I'm not sure if I can make it after that Baltimore City Schools Board Meeting.
GUYS LETS DO THIS!!!
The Out of the Darkness Community Walk is a 3-5 mile scenic walk taking place in more than 200 communities across the country this fall. Proceeds will benefit the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, to fund research, education, survivor and awareness programs — both to prevent suicide and to assist those affected by suicide.
Saturday, November 8
organizations about suicide
This website has a really fantastic Q&A section that addresses many of the questions I have asked myself on this blog. In addition to that, it lists the signs of depression in adults, children, infants, adolescents, and the elderly.
CHECK THIS OUT!
LEADS: A Suicide Prevention Education Program
"LEADS is intended for students in grades 9-12 and creates opportunities for conversations within the classroom around suicide and depression and the stigma surrounding suicide. Included in the curriculum is a Teacher's Guide, group and individual activities, suicide prevention resources and a template for a school suicide crisis management plan."The video is $125 but I will eventually buy this.
Is a person at increased risk to attempt suicide if they’ve been exposed to it in their family or has had a close friend who died by suicide?
Yes, suicide does tend to run in families, but this is generally attributed to the genetic component of depression and related depressive illnesses. A healthy person talking about a suicide or being aware of a suicide among family or friends does not put them at greater risk for attempting suicide. And mere exposure to suicide does not alone put someone at greater risk for suicide. However, when combined with a number of other risk factors, it could increase someone’s likelihood of an attempt. Failing to treat or mistreating depressive illness puts a person at increased risk of suicide. It is very important to remember that the vast majority of people living with depression do not have suicidal thoughts or die by suicide.
suicide prevention
This website features FREE downloads of materials on suicide prevention.
Our Crisis Center website here in Bmore is:
http://www.bcresponse.org
american foundation for suicide prevention
This site has a really informative breakdown of suicides by age, gender, special population, and various statistics. It also offers strategies for coping with suicide loss.
"A woman takes her own life every 90 minutes in the U.S., but it is estimated that one woman attempts suicide every 78 seconds.
- Women attempt suicide three times as much as men.
- The higher rate of attempted suicide in women is attributed to the elevated rate of mood disorders among females, such as major depression, dysthymia and seasonal affective disorder.
- Although women attempt suicide more often, men complete suicide at a rate four times that of women.
- More women than men report a history of attempted suicide, with a gender ratio of 2:1."
http://www.morethansad.org/
suicide hotline
I checked the website just now and he has this linked:
http://www.pickupthephone.org/
Dia de los Muertos!!!
Weegee
Weegee photographed crime scenes in the 1940s, often when people died. Most times, he showed up at the scene of the crime before the police did. I believe Jack Wilgus told us in history of photo that Weegee had his own police radio.
p.s. will someone please buy me this book?
http://www.amazon.com/Sleeping-Beauty-Memorial-Photography-America/dp/0942642325
Post Mortem Photography
After the invention of the Daguerreotype in the 19th century, it became very common for families who could not afford to have their portrait painted, to do a sitting for a Daguerreotype. Because there was a high child mortality rate at that time period, often these Daguerreotypes might be the only image they have to remember their child.