It’s a tragic cause of death in the United States, claiming far too many lives each year — but it can be treated. Suicidal ideation, a complex mental health condition, can lead to deadly consequences for the people it afflicts. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, more than 48,100 people in America died by suicide in 2021 — making it the 11th leading cause of death. The good news is there are options for effective long-term treatment for suicidal thoughts, and these treatments can save lives.
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Can Suicidal Thoughts Be Diagnosed and Treated?
Before we explain how long-term treatment for suicidal thoughts and how suicidal ideation is diagnosed, let’s explain more about this complicated condition. At its core, suicidal ideation is a spectrum, not one specific thing. It ranges from passive ideation — a person may wish to die or simply stop existing, but they haven’t made a plan to make that happen. In this case, the mental health condition likely comes from the person’s despair or sense of hopelessness.
The other end of the spectrum requires urgent action because, during active suicidal ideation, the person not only wants to die — they’ve made a detailed plan of how to do it, or thought it through to the point of considering the time, location, and manner. This represents an escalation in their threat to themselves, and an immediate response is needed to save their life.
When diagnosing suicidal ideation, the first task is to determine where on the spectrum the person is — and then to tailor long-term treatment for suicidal thoughts to their current needs and risk to themselves.
There are several possible warning signs of suicidal ideation, including behavioral indicators like withdrawing from friends and family members, neglecting personal hygiene, major changes in sleep patterns and appetite, and increased use of substances like drugs and alcohol. Emotional and psychological symptoms are also possible, such as persistent and overwhelming feelings of hopelessness or sadness, excessive guilt, and mood swings. The person might also say their life has no purpose or express that there’s no point.
It’s a serious condition, and ignoring the warning signs can lead to grave consequences. However, it’s important to remember that treatment for suicidal ideation is available, and it can save lives.
How Can Suicidal Thoughts Be Treated Long-Term?
When discussing long-term treatment for suicidal thoughts, we’re really talking about a multifaceted approach to helping the person — and not all treatment options will be used for every person. Generally, treatment will include therapy and counseling, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy, when the therapist helps patients identify and change negative thinking and behavioral patterns, as well as dialectical behavior therapy, which teaches patients to manage their intense emotions and reduce self-destructive behaviors. Group therapy is also common, helping patients get peer support from people going through the same thing and feel less isolated.
Medication is also a major component of treatment for long-term suicidal thoughts. Antidepressants, for example, can help people reduce and minimize the symptoms of depression — a major cause of suicidal ideation — by balancing chemicals in the brain that affect our emotions and moods. Mood stabilizers are another option and can be particularly useful for people who have bipolar disorder because they can help prevent extreme mood swings.
At Moment of Clarity, complementary and alternative approaches form an important third part of long-term treatment for suicidal thoughts. This includes things like mindfulness practices, which teach techniques like meditation and mindfulness to help people stay present at the moment and reduce the impact of negative thoughts; yoga and physical exercise that improve mental health by reducing stress and releasing endorphins; nutrition and sleep hygiene to improve overall mental health; and art and music therapy or other creative therapies to give people an outlet for expression.
What Are Some Coping Skills for Suicidal Thoughts?
But the options aren’t limited to just therapy and medication when considering long-term treatment for suicidal thoughts, according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Brief interventions can be essential to de-escalating suicidal crises, including things like safety planning intervention that involves the person figuring out the warning signs of a developing suicidal crisis. Next, they determine specific places, activities, and people that can help distract their thoughts, as well as others they can talk with about their suicidal thoughts. The plan also involves having a list of emergency contacts (like the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) and a plan to reduce their access to things in their home that can be dangerous during a suicidal crisis.
Other interventions can also help, such as lethal means counseling, which aims to reduce the risk of suicide by getting the person or their family members to reduce their access to every form of lethal means that they possibly can.
Long-term support is crucial, even beyond immediate treatment for suicidal thoughts, and this can come in the form of suicidal ideation support groups, community resources that provide ongoing counseling and crisis intervention help, and the emotional support of friends and loved ones who can provide consistent, non-judgmental emotional support and recognize early warning signs of a crisis.
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How to Help Someone Who Is Suicidal
If someone is in a suicidal crisis, it’s important to act immediately — don’t wait to do something. In a crisis, calling 911 is always an option. If someone isn’t injured but at risk of harming themselves, crisis or suicide hotlines can be helpful places to turn as well. Calling or texting 988 will reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, which also has an online chat feature at 988lifeline.org/chat/ and a Spanish language line by calling 888-628-9454. Veterans or service members can get specialized help by calling 988 and then pressing “1.”
For people who aren’t in an immediate crisis but need treatment for suicidal thoughts or ideation, Moment of Clarity can help. Our comprehensive approach to treating suicidal ideation includes therapy, medication, and other complementary and alternative methods that, together, can help people gain new coping skills for the condition and find the will to keep going toward a better, brighter future. Our outpatient mental health treatment services in California have a track record of success, helping people stabilize and recover from a wide variety of mental health conditions. Don’t wait — call us today at 949-625-0564. We’re here to help.
External Sources
- National Institute of Mental Health — Suicide Prevention
- American Foundation for Suicide Prevention — Brief Interventions for Managing Suicidal Crises
- 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline — Talk to Someone Now
