Suicide: Male VS Female

Every human life’s natural end is death. Some people choose to end their own lives for reasons that have never been fully understood. This is known as suicide. It has been investigated that each year approximately 800,000 people die in the world by taking their own life. Suicide can be regarded as the complex behaviour that has led to numerous causes, including cultural, financial, psychological and social factors that influence the decision to take one’s own life. Gender discrimination is a major factor which helps to understand the complex behaviour of performing the act. This shows that both the genders, male and female have different suicidal rates according to the statistical research. Women attempt suicide three or four times more frequently then men, but four times as many men die from attempted suicide. In this essay I would argue on the significance of understanding gender difference in the rate of suicide. This also discusses on what are the major factors behind bringing the idea of self-killing among man than women and how mental health for boys and men could be improved.

In Canada, more than any other class, men die by suicide and these facts must be tackled! This requires effective attention and investment. There were 3,728 suicides in Canada in 2011. Of these, 2781 were male suicides. This was according to the governmental statistics in Canada, 2014. The statistics also represents the age group experiencing most complex thoughts for suicide, age group of around 40-60 depicts the highest rate of suicides in Canada. In society men are considered to be strong, self-reliant, able to cope with pain and take care of things more easily which make it difficult for them to realize that they have health problems. This makes them to hide their feelings often leading to depression. As society believes that men are ideal characteristics, they try to become another person. For example, some men with depression hide their emotions and may seem angry, irritable, or aggressive (the after effects of “take it like a man”) while many women appear to be sad or express sadness. Depressed people may feel very tired, losing interest in work, family, or hobbies. These may be more likely to have sleeping problems in men than in women. When things do not go well around such people, they could become more aggressive and harmful. This makes them mentally weak and unable to perform further tasks. Since, they could not out show their problems and sadness usually ends their life by self-killing. Men being mentally stronger than women depends on lethal methods in suicide such as firearms, hanging, and asphyxiation, by comparison women are more likely to misuse medications or medicines. Men are expected to be positive and risk takers. Therefore, there is a lack of understanding of men’s vulnerability. Jane Powell the founder and director of Calm, the Campaign Against Living Miserably, which specifically deals with male suicide. She makes a provocative case: that while breast cancer does kill men, we rightly consider it as a female disease. In the same way suicide prevention must focus on men, she says. Male depression and suicide services need to be explicitly developed. In Northern Alberta, there is a successful programme called Men at Risk, targeting men in the oil patch, forestry, and agricultural sectors. The programme creators have done an excellent job working with employers in these industries to reduce the larger number of men who work these jobs from taking their lives. To avoid depression, one should always find the optimistic view point in a negative situation, cultivate and live in a positive environment. In order to do these, it is essential to have influences in our lives that support and lift one up instead of dragging down. It is always to find positive sources and get engaged with them.

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Suicide is a sensitive and complex concern of Canada and other countries as it includes numerous causes. Social isolation has been identified as a risk factor for suicidal problems. It is a feeling of sadness or anxiety to be alone or to feel disconnected from the world around us, it can have a negative impact on ones physical, mental and social health. This feeling could be classified under the common category relationships which affects people differently. This includes isolation and lack of social support, relationship breakdown and loss or conflict. Men always try to resolve their problems without letting anyone know. This is mainly because of the feeling that what others will think about them and most importantly their image in the society. Hence, men had more restricted social networks than women and this is heavily work based. So, for a man a loss of job also means the loss of a whole set of social connections as well, it is again the same if their relationship with their partner breaks up. It meant when trouble hit, men could become very isolated very quickly. Men tend to ignore their stress entirely or deal with it by engaging in self-destructive actions mainly as abusing drugs and alcohol. Harmful use of alcohol and other substances are found in 25-50% of all suicides. When alcohol or opioid use is associated with other psychiatric disorders, like mental illness (depression, stress, loneliness etc.,) the risk of suicide will also increase. Of all suicide deaths, 22% can be attributed to drug consumption, which means that if alcohol is not consumed in the population, any fifth suicide would not occur. In order to resolve such problems strong personal relationships is necessary. It can act as a protective factor against the risk of suicide. The closest social of the individual- partners, family members, parents, colleagues, significant others has the most influence in times of crisis and can be supportive. Friends and family can be a significant source of social, emotional and financial help and can mitigate the impact of external stressors. This can help people to come out from their problems and feel hopeful in their future life.

In conclusion, sociologists have discussed at length why suicide is more common in males than in females. The epidemic of male suicide has been silent, but it cannot remain so. We should make them to understand that suicide is not an option. We never know when the answers we are looking for will come to our doorsteps. It has been stated in this essay that part of the blame is on the socialisation of males. By reinforcing what society considers acceptable male behaviour, men are less likely to ask for help when experiencing suicidal thoughts. Alcohol and drug misuse also appear to have a stronger relationship with the socially constructed notion of ‘masculinity’. It is difficult to generalize on the causes of suicide among men. Individual actions often require individual research and understanding. Therefore, suicide figures should be approached with caution as in some cases although this may not be the case, they appear to show higher rates of male suicide. It is also worth nothing that suicide is a last resort for many. Although death is the main intention in some case; in many others it is often a cry for help-the intention is to live, feel worthy and highlight one’s pain and problems.