it helps me to distinguish between instincts (irrationality) vs. intellect (rationality)
we are alive
only because of survival instinct - wanting to be alive is irrational; we are simply driven be the most important instinct in nature (vs. the universe which has death as default). all life has this builtin instinct of self-preservation, otherwise all life would perish - instantly. any organism will eventually die, but not without the ultimate 'battle of its life' (regardless - it all ends in entropy)
rationality doesn't have a chance in overcoming the survival instincts. it tells us that life is suffering, but it will not overwrite this instinct no matter how hard we try - you only get rid of the survival instinct after your last breath (after death)
for me, the only chance i'd get is to trick my instinct; what's closer to death? sleep, coma, or unconsciousness in general. a peaceful transition to death implies unawareness: Nembutal; i'll go to sleep, and my sleep is so deep that my brain 'forgets to breathe', so it requires no instinct to stay alive - the most peaceful death
the more traumatic suicides require truly unbearable suffering - every moment of your life makes you desperate enough to escape this non-stop suffering, by any means necessary
suffering is relative, but we have the concepts of
self, future, and intent…
i made this list of
peaceful suicide methods for myself:
so if any of these methods would be available to me, i would be able to overcome my survival instinct
the
more important decision requires deep introspection:
do i really want to die?
for me, the answer is easy, but others need to decide for themselves:
what prospects do i have in my life? what do i have to look forward to? do i have a tendency to see my future as more suffering, and possibly some acceptable rewards, or do i see the glass half full: i'll concentrate on 'getting help', and the possibility to get 'better' (my own perspective) - as well as accepting that suffering is inevitable, but i'm willing to put in the effort to continue my life until i'll die (anyway) a natural death (i am aware of my inevitable death); in short:
will my future be tolerable, or not? (my best estimate)
i used 'getting help' in quotes because, if you work in the field, you will know that 'help' is relative: not all doctors / psychologists / psychiatrist / therapists are equal. if you're lucky you might find someone that has the chance to actually help you, but in most cases you will end up wasting your efforts and resources in vain - are you ready to continue your suffering, and if so - for how long? when will you decide when enough is enough (mentally speaking - i'm assuming you don't have any major physical illnesses)
i hope you will find some peace in your quest