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Suicide risk rises with age
The incidence is highest among the elderly, where the resources are often scarce.
Associated Press
Published September 19, 2007
Not long after 72-year-old Anne Beale Golsan had retired on disability from her job as a librarian, she put a stack of paid bills out for the mail, hung up a freshly pressed outfit and taped a note to the front of the house. "Don't come in by yourself. Get somebody to come with you. Sorry, Love Beale." Her niece arrived at the house they shared in Baton Rouge, La., to find police already there. Golsan had killed herself with a gunshot to the head. "Every single day it makes me feel like I wish I could have done something," Jane Golsan Ray said, recalling her aunt's death eight years ago. "I wish I could turn back the clock and prevent it. It doesn't get any better. It hurts every day." Seniors are the highest risk population in the country for suicide. But few suicide-prevention programs target them - a result, advocates say, of scarce funding and lack of concern for older Americans. And mental heath experts say the number of senior suicides is likely to climb as baby boomers enter their twilight years. The overall U.S. suicide rate is 11 per 100,000 people. But for those 65 and older, that figure rises to 14 per 100,000, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which based its findings on 2004 data, the most recent available. Ten states passed laws last year intended to curb suicide among children and young adults. But only two - New Jersey and New Mexico - passed laws addressing suicide among older people, according to Suicide Prevention Action Network USA, a national advocacy group in Washington. Depression is underdetected at all ages, mental health groups say. But much more funding is available for treating younger people, including $82-million in federal money approved in 2004. The situation prompted Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada, who lost his father to suicide, to propose funding more suicide-prevention programs for seniors and changing a Medicare coverage rule that forces seniors to pay more for outpatient mental health services than other medical care. Some advocates and mental health workers say they also have to battle a prevailing notion that depression is a normal part of aging. "It is not natural and should be treated at all times," said Dr. Paula Clayton, a psychiatrist and medical director for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Fast facts What to watch for -Persistent sad, anxious or "empty" mood -Feelings of hopelessness, pessimism, guilt -Loss of interest in hobbies and other activities that were once enjoyed -Fatigue, irritability -Difficulty concentrating, remembering, making decisions -Insomnia or oversleeping -Significant weight change -Previous suicide attempts or family history of suicide -History of alcohol and substance abuse -Loss of personal, social or professional ties Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Mental Health
[Last modified September 19, 2007, 01:23:57]
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