Suicide rate almost doubles in Greece in the last three years

[Kyriakos]

Another yahoo Greece article: http://gr.news.yahoo.com/1-727-&#94...ρόνια-113929639.html (you can use google translator, it is not perfect but it is something i guess).

According to statistics read in parliament in the last three years there have been 1727 suicides, or failed attempts to commit suicide.

In Thessaloniki the number is impressive, climbing from 55 in 2009, to 98 in 2010, and 97 in 2011.

*

This is very sad. Personally i have been through major depression, and at times had suicidal ideation, so now i am not really in danger of thinking such things no matter the economic state. But clearly many people who were used to being reasonably happy when things did not look grim, now are facing extreme difficulty with what life appears to have become.

Thessalonike has around 1 million people, and now 100 suicide attempts (supposedly by different people) each year, which means 1 in every 10.000 people (at least) has acted on suicidal ideation, either successfully or not successfully.

I suspect this is still a low percentage compared to other places in the west, but it is never good to see the suicide rate double in a year, and then remain as high the next one.

-What is the suicide rate in your own country? Has there been a rise with the current economic crisis?

 

[warpus]

We had ~3,700 suicides in Canada in 2008. Looking at numbers it doesn't appear to have been influenced by the global economic crisis, but it hasn't really hit us very hard here. Unemployment is a bit up and people are a bit worried about our southern neighbours, but that's pretty much it.

edit: I guess the crisis sort of started in 2008 and the numbers I looked up only go up till then.. so I suppose the numbers could have gone up.

So.. I have no idea how that compares to Greece. Do you guys have a good support system for those who are depressed and/or suicidal?

 

[Kyriakos]

We had ~3,700 suicides in Canada in 2008. Looking at numbers it doesn't appear to have been influenced by the global economic crisis, but it hasn't really hit us very hard here. Unemployment is a bit up and people are a bit worried about our southern neighbours, but that's pretty much it.

edit: I guess the crisis sort of started in 2008 and the numbers I looked up only go up till then.. so I suppose the numbers could have gone up.

So.. I have no idea how that compares to Greece. Do you guys have a good support system for those who are depressed and/or suicidal?

Greece actually used to have a pretty decent healthcare system, but it was running on huge debts... Now payments to the weakest groups have gone down, or are not being paid at all, pending decisions which will make them an annual deal instead of a monthly one. Even so they will be greatly reduced in the end, so the answer is now NO, Greece does not have a good system for taking care of people in serious depression any more.

However, in the tragedy of it all, i feel there is hope. This country had a very sick sub-culture of supposed "love for life", which in reality was nothing more than disguised mental illness. All countries have such sub-cultures, but the Greek variant was particularly sick. Maybe now people will value more the real worthy things in life, and not the epidermic idiocies they used to run after (?). Then again maybe in retaliation to despair they will stick to their old ways even more vehemently, who knows.

 

[warpus]

This country had a very sick sub-culture of supposed "love for life", which in reality was nothing more than disguised mental illness.

Can you explain this? "Love for life" seems to me like the opposite of a mental illness

 

[Kyriakos]

Yes, i thought of how i wrote that; wrong phraseology.

I meant that there was a prevailing culture here of people acting like they are having fun no matter what. Night-clubs were always packed full, alcohol consumption was going up, and cigarette consumption is on par with Turkey (which is pretty high).

Generally it seems to me that all this was an attempt to say to the others: "i am fine, no problems here!" much like when the small boy walking past the cemetery begins to whistle a song, to present the false image that he is not afraid.

 

[warpus]

Ahh I see

So basically everyone was pretending that the country is doing alright, while engaging in tax fraud, etc... and now that everything is catching up with Greeks, they're getting depressed and committing suicide

That sounds quite human, actually.

 

[Kyriakos]

Hm, that is not what i typed

I am pretty sure the silent majority was not engaging in fraud. In fact the systemic fraud is linked to a few select powerful families, politicians and economic trusts.
What i meant is that there was little culture of mental health (but this is true of most countries anyway, if not of all countries) since problems (i mean personal ones) were being swept below the carpet. Now the crisis triggered an inner crisis too for many people, which is why (i think) there is such a high rise in suicide attempts.

But even from your own statistic of Canada it would seem you have more than three times the suicide rate per capita that Greece has even now.

 

[Loppan Torkel]

It seems you're pretty well off compared to other countries...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_OECD_countries_by_suicide_rate

I think we're trying to adopt your "love of life" type of mentality. I agree, most of the time it's obviously shallow and fake.

 

[Kyriakos]

It seems you're pretty well off compared to other countries...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_OECD_countries_by_suicide_rate

I think we're trying to adopt your "love of life" type of mentality. I agree, most of the time it's obviously shallow and fake.

Thank you for that chart. So in South Korea the suicide rate is around 30 times bigger than in Thessaloniki? Well, that is something positive we have still, although like i said the rate has doubled.

 

[Synobun]

I think a lot of countries in that part of Europe probably have suicide problems. It seems like a rather glum area to be a part of these days, and the economy sure doesn't help it.

 

[Thorgalaeg]

Even if Greece rate has doubled it still represents half of Canada's rate. So it is far of being a problem.

 

[Azale]

If anyone deserves to riot in the streets, it's the Greeks. No national sovereignty, a government of criminals, and an opposition (from what I've read) led most prominently by stalinist idiots.

The fall in living standards and the rise in suicides is not a coincidence. Even if the latter isn't statistically significant compared to other countries, that much of an increase is kinda ridiculous.

 

[warpus]

Hm, that is not what i typed

I am pretty sure the silent majority was not engaging in fraud. In fact the systemic fraud is linked to a few select powerful families, politicians and economic trusts.

Really? I was under the impression that more than 50% of Greeks engage in tax fraud.

But even from your own statistic of Canada it would seem you have more than three times the suicide rate per capita that Greece has even now.

If that is true then maybe you guys don't have such a big problem with suicide then Or we have a huge problem.. hmm.. I've never heard that we do though

 

[emzie]

It's always perplexed me that suicide rates are as low as they are.

 

[Yeekim]

Thank you for that chart. So in South Korea the suicide rate is around 30 times bigger than in Thessaloniki? Well, that is something positive we have still, although like i said the rate has doubled.

No, just 3 times. It is 30 per 100,000, not 10,000.

 

[Kyriakos]

No, just 3 times. It is 30 per 100,000, not 10,000.

Ah, makes more sense now