Discussion Why aren't more people suicidal?

[HappyForever?]

Most people are not rich. Most people are not attractive. Most people are not privileged in any way, and probably will never be. Yet they are horrified at the thought of committing suicide, and instead insist on living a boring life where suffering is the norm and relief is few and far between. Are the scraps of contentment in their daily lives enough fuel to keep them going despite the cruel reality? Maybe we're built differently, it takes more to satisfy us, so when the hope of attaining what we desire dies, we turn to death for the ultimate relief?
Or maybe SI has made its way into every fiber of their being, preventing them from seeking death even in the most dire of situations? Even people who are put at a severe disadvantage usually don't consider suicide. Those who have a debilitating illness, who are physically or mentally disabled, who will probably never lead even an unsatisfactory average life. If a normal person's life is unsatisfactory, living like this is hell on earth. Yet they still attempt to "live their life to the fullest", when it's clear that despite their best efforts they will still be unable to have a average life, let alone an enjoyable one. If I were in their situation I would have killed myself as soon as I got the chance.

 

[Journeytoletgo]

Most people are not rich. Most people are not attractive. Most people are not privileged in any way, and probably will never be. Yet they are horrified at the thought of committing suicide, and instead insist on living a boring life where suffering is the norm and relief is few and far between. Are the scraps of contentment in their daily lives enough fuel to keep them going despite the cruel reality? Maybe we're built differently, it takes more to satisfy us, so when the hope of attaining what we desire dies, we turn to death for the ultimate relief?
Or maybe SI has made its way into every fiber of their being, preventing them from seeking death even in the most dire of situations? Even people who are put at a severe disadvantage usually don't consider suicide. Those who have a debilitating illness, who are physically or mentally disabled, who will probably never lead even an unsatisfactory average life. If a normal person's life is unsatisfactory, living like this is hell on earth. Yet they still attempt to "live their life to the fullest", when it's clear that despite their best efforts they will still be unable to have a average life, let alone an enjoyable one. If I were in their situation I would have killed myself as soon as I got the chance.

Most likely survival instinct and religious delusion

 

[HappyForever?]

Most likely survival instinct and religious delusion

Probably survival instinct. Maybe we only have the "death is scary" SI and not the "life is preferable to death at all times" SI.
Religion certainly plays a part, however it's the same in places where religion isn't really prevalent, so I doubt it's the main reason.

 

[NumbItAll]

I always wonder the same... not only are most people not suicidal, but many are actually happy??? Good for them but wow I have trouble comprehending this and it feels very alienating.

 

[Death is beautiful]

I can't even explain it, it looks like we're in the matrix and all these people are fake otherwise why is the suicide rate so low

 

[FuneralCry]

There really is no way of knowing how others feel as we are not living their lives. People may appear like they are doing fine on the outside but may be suffering on the inside. There are probably many people who do not want to exist, but are stuck in this world because suicide is so difficult. I believe that some people are naturally more suited for life and are therefore able to cope better with lifes problems. Many people fear death as after all this existence is all we know and humans are programmed to live. I personally do not understand people who are not suicidal. I could never be satisfied with living no matter what happened. I have never wanted to be alive and I am not meant for this world.

 

[HappyForever?]

I always wonder the same... not only are most people not suicidal, but many are actually happy??? Good for them but wow I have trouble comprehending this and it feels very alienating.

I can't even explain it, it looks like we're in the matrix and all these people are fake otherwise why is the suicide rate so low

Their brains are probably different from ours so they are easily contented. The reason why these people are so common is probably natural selection. People like us are more likely to commit suicide and less likely to have children so there are fewer of us.

There really is no way of knowing how others feel as we are not living their lives. People may appear like they are doing fine on the outside but may be suffering on the inside. There are probably many people who do not want to exist, but are stuck in this world because suicide is so difficult. I believe that some people are naturally more suited for life and are therefore able to cope better with lifes problems. Many people fear death as after all this existence is all we know and humans are programmed to live. I personally do not understand people who are not suicidal. I could never be satisfied with living no matter what happened. I have never wanted to be alive and I am not meant for this world.

Makes sense. If I met someone from here IRL I wouldn't be able to tell. However from my observations most people still regard suicide as unthinkable even if they are not satisfied with their lives. And it's not because they're afraid of death. They simply don't consider suicide as an option.

 

[Crazy4u]

probably fear of failure or death, hope, and si

honestly it is better. If suicide rate goes up, access to peaceful methods might get difficult. There are many psychos, forced lifers, bullies and karens in the world we live in. They will act like their loved one is the most important one in the world and fight so others resort to violent suicide methods.

 

[Luchs]

Most people are not rich. Most people are not attractive. Most people are not privileged in any way, and probably will never be. Yet they are horrified at the thought of committing suicide, and instead insist on living a boring life where suffering is the norm and relief is few and far between. Are the scraps of contentment in their daily lives enough fuel to keep them going despite the cruel reality? Maybe we're built differently, it takes more to satisfy us, so when the hope of attaining what we desire dies, we turn to death for the ultimate relief?
Or maybe SI has made its way into every fiber of their being, preventing them from seeking death even in the most dire of situations? Even people who are put at a severe disadvantage usually don't consider suicide. Those who have a debilitating illness, who are physically or mentally disabled, who will probably never lead even an unsatisfactory average life. If a normal person's life is unsatisfactory, living like this is hell on earth. Yet they still attempt to "live their life to the fullest", when it's clear that despite their best efforts they will still be unable to have a average life, let alone an enjoyable one. If I were in their situation I would have killed myself as soon as I got the chance.

Because many people are content with leading normal, average lives. It is about the way you see the world. Our brains are just damaged by the experiences we have had, that leads us to see ctb as our only option. Their lense is still functional and they can focus on and see the good in everything, so ctb seems irratiinal to them. It all depends in how you see the world.

 

[rehtsedead]

I think people are afraid of the unknown and that's natural. Most live life based on some religious values as well

 

[Gustav Hartmann]

Most people have a high level of happiness hormones like dopanine, serotonin etc. If you loose one leg and your level is high, you say: "Not so bad, I have one leg left.

 

[PrawnCocktail]

Most people are not rich. Most people are not attractive. Most people are not privileged in any way, and probably will never be. Yet they are horrified at the thought of committing suicide, and instead insist on living a boring life where suffering is the norm and relief is few and far between. Are the scraps of contentment in their daily lives enough fuel to keep them going despite the cruel reality? Maybe we're built differently, it takes more to satisfy us, so when the hope of attaining what we desire dies, we turn to death for the ultimate relief?
Or maybe SI has made its way into every fiber of their being, preventing them from seeking death even in the most dire of situations? Even people who are put at a severe disadvantage usually don't consider suicide. Those who have a debilitating illness, who are physically or mentally disabled, who will probably never lead even an unsatisfactory average life. If a normal person's life is unsatisfactory, living like this is hell on earth. Yet they still attempt to "live their life to the fullest", when it's clear that despite their best efforts they will still be unable to have a average life, let alone an enjoyable one. If I were in their situation I would have killed myself as soon as I got the chance.

I think people find it very hard to question things that they were taught at a young age, and have become a foundation for other beliefs. To a lot of people, "suicide is bad" is as much a truth as the sky being blue. It's just like how people in cults continue to have unconditional belief in things that seem ridiculous from the outside.

 

[LateToParty]

During depression it may be hard to understand happiness or even contentment with life. I think at some point in my life when I was a teenager I could relate to some of these thoughts. Since then I have understood a lot more about life. When you're healthy mentally, you can be happy just for being alive. You live in the moment. Free and happy. Problems may be there, but they don't occupy your mind for no reason. No pain or anxiety. Doesn't mean you're stupid (though you can be stupid and happy at the same time of course), rather the opposite - your brain deals with everything in an appropriate manner. And if you can't do anything about your problems, you just adapt as much as it is possible and maybe wait for an opportunity to actually be able to make a change.

Even if you have some form of disability or chronic illness, except those that cause unbearable pain and suffering, you can still enjoy life. Enjoyment is an innate ability. Being rich or attractive doesn't have much to do with it. Those things will only affect the lifestyle, not the feelings experienced.

If everyone felt horrible, there would be no society, no taking care of each other, let alone science or technology. No one would even think about being against suicide and life itself would cease to exist or would not even have come to existence in the first place.

That's my understanding of why suicidal ideation is an exception rather than norm.

And just think about it - just like it can be hard for some people to understand why others don't want to die, it can be equally hard for others to understand the opposite. This is why euthanasia and assisted suicide laws are hard to pass.

 

[Oblivion]

For the very same reason why poor people support capitalism and even sometimes oppose free universal healthcare, it's HOPE, they hope that they will get a chance at being billionaires, and things that limit the profit of companies and redistribute wealth in a more fair way would diminish their hope in becoming billionaires.

Mix Hope with a strong survival instinct and great chemical balance in the brain, you can find a paralyzed man living in the sewers that doesn't even consider death for a second.

 

[Baemo]

Everyone views life from different angles, some might consider some things worse than others do.

Some poeple are religious which may help, others see a much greater purpose in this universe than the human beings and don't take things seriously.

Other poeple are born with or develop a mental illness which makes things worse.

These are just some examples, it depends on lots of things.

 

[Istanbulite]

IKR

 

[Foresight]

A sense of purpose, meaning, and/or enjoyment are the main factors.

 

[Ligottian]

For the very same reason why poor people support capitalism and even sometimes oppose free universal healthcare, it's HOPE, they hope that they will get a chance at being billionaires, and things that limit the profit of companies and redistribute wealth in a more fair way would diminish their hope in becoming billionaire.

Mix Hope with a strong survival instinct and great chemical balance in the brain, you can find a paralyzed man living in the sewers that doesn't even consider death for a second.

Brilliant post! I wish I had written it.

 

[NormaJeane]

Life on Earth is programmed to live in the same way as the clock is ticking forward - the evolution programs life on. Humans are programmed to reproduce and programmed to live so extreme circumstances are required for us to want to die.

There have to be homeless, disabled, sick, poor, ugly, old and lonely people who want to die, but they must overcome the survival instinct to be able to commit suicide, the most difficult thing to do. They are alive in the same way that people on Sanctioned Suicide are alive and a successful suicide requires a method that works and a brave action.

But I understand what you mean, in a newspaper I saw a woman, 45 - 50 years old, sitting in a wheelchair almost paralyzed, she lived alone and had no one who could help her. I have a neighbour who is so old and crooked that she neither sees nor hears and she pees in the stairwell. And I wonder: How can people want to live on in these situations? But I believe that most people will become suicidal with the passage of time because many people live longer than the body can handle - life expectancy is too long.

The prolonging of human life leads to many years of humans suffering before death. Why should humans be forced to die of old age no matter how life turns out and no matter what we want - should we have a life without dignity and the worst death when we can die quickly from a lethal injection?

 

[placesyouwillgo]

Most people are not rich. Most people are not attractive. Most people are not privileged in any way, and probably will never be. Yet they are horrified at the thought of committing suicide, and instead insist on living a boring life where suffering is the norm and relief is few and far between. Are the scraps of contentment in their daily lives enough fuel to keep them going despite the cruel reality? Maybe we're built differently, it takes more to satisfy us, so when the hope of attaining what we desire dies, we turn to death for the ultimate relief?
Or maybe SI has made its way into every fiber of their being, preventing them from seeking death even in the most dire of situations? Even people who are put at a severe disadvantage usually don't consider suicide. Those who have a debilitating illness, who are physically or mentally disabled, who will probably never lead even an unsatisfactory average life. If a normal person's life is unsatisfactory, living like this is hell on earth. Yet they still attempt to "live their life to the fullest", when it's clear that despite their best efforts they will still be unable to have a average life, let alone an enjoyable one. If I were in their situation I would have killed myself as soon as I got the chance.

Ive thought this before too

 

[markimobzzdeasui]

Many reasons imo.
1.Toxic positive culture- You can do anything because we say so and If you can't then it is your fault all along.
2.Fear of religion/afterlife/unknown- It is the biggest one I think. People outside are not that open minded and knowledgeable on such issues as here. Where I come from, this fear is amplified in the very fabric of their being,which along with inherent SI, can make them behave in very irrational manner. They are ready to suffer for decades without any reward at the end just because of this. It can happen to any human being.
3.Inherent human narcissism,sense of higher purpose and seeking it when it isn't there.
4. Sometimes a person can be suicidal with nothing truly to live for,but may not go with that option if their life conditons don't push them to that edge. Like they may be sufficiently enough rich or have some loving family or basically anything to not constanly think about suicide and live in suicidal ideation. Many of us here are not that lucky!
Human mind works in such ways to reduce pain through Addiction, dissociation,denial, etc , which make us forget our problem till their is no external factor to bring them to light again.