Volume 6 Issue 9: June 20, 2018
High-functioning depression can be difficult to see even when you have regular, close contact with individuals who are struggling. It is often a shock to realize that someone who has made a clearly meaningful contribution to the world could have felt so isolated or despairing as to consider suicide. After suicide, those who have just seen the person will often say that they seemed okay; everything seemed fine.


People suffering with the risk factors for suicide step through clinic and hospital doors every day. They seek medical care when their quality of life has diminished from age, illness, or chronic pain, but many stay silent about their emotional pain and keep it to themselves. But medical caregivers can help break this terrible feeling of isolation by taking a moment to ask a few direct questions that can ultimately save lives.

In the effort to treat depression, novel therapies are emerging that attempt to disrupt the dysfunctional neural network circuits of depression entirely. One emerging approach is psilocybin-assisted therapy, which in a clinical setting, involves a 6 to 8 hour session of guided medical use structured by talk therapy before, during, and after the medication session.

Suicide is a serious issue that affects many of our young people, and it is becoming increasingly prevalent. According to the Centers for Disease Control, suicide is the third leading cause of death for youth between the ages of 10 and 24 years. Three times as many teens and young adults commit suicide now, as compared to the 1940’s. Currently we lose about 4,600 youth to suicide every year. But that is only part of the picture.
Reach the 24-hour National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 [TALK]
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