Increasing suicide among baby boomers - (55, depression, states, separate)
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Did you know that there has been a dramatic increase in suicide by boomers? Surprised?
Whether it’s caused by finances, lost idealism, lost meaning and values, loneliness or lack of belonging, connection and support; the point is, suicide among the older population does not get much attention (Ageism???). i.e.:
Over all, men have ahigher rate (27.3 per 100,000) than women (8.1 per 100,000). But mostdistressing was the demographic where the greatest spike occurred: babyboomers. For men 50 to 54, the increase was 49.4%, and 47.8% for those 55 to 59. Rates for women increased with age, with a truly disturbing uptick amongthose 60 to 64 years: That number had jumped 59.7%.
And the situation could actually be worse. “It’s vastly underreported,”
The article speculates about causes, but that is not its subject, the subject being the rates themselves and the changes in the rates. One possible cause is economic hardship (Great Recession of 2008). The article notes that historically, suicide rates go up in times of economic hardship.
One possible cause that I wonder about (but which has only the briefest mention in the article) is drug use. We boomers were the first generation in the history of the world to partake in mind-altering drugs in significant numbers. I wonder (without having any evidence one way or the other) whether drug use early in life (say, in one's 20's), even if not continued, could have negative effects which show up later on.
These suicide rates started increasing way before the recession, at least 10 years according to reports online.
Besides financial stress, there is depression, physical handicap, mental issues and then the big misuse of drugs. Druggies now facing the real world can't 'party on dude' anymore and can't handle or face the responsibilities of the real world.
I expect it will increase even more. Declining help with medical expenses for those on medicare, single isolated seniors, loneliness, all will cause the rates to increase.
Oh, goodie. A real "happy, happy, joy, joy" subject if there ever was one. But being well past the age of 64 perhaps I dodged the bullet, so to speak.
Having said that with tongue firmly planted in cheek, it's all too real and most unfortunate. One only has to look at the many, economy- income-based threads on this Forum to see what preys heavily on a lot of people's minds.
I can just imagine being, say, 60+, in less than robust health, having lost a major portion of my retirement savings in the recession and being informed by my employer that I am no longer needed.
No! I really can't imagine the senses of dread, hopelessness, helplessness, panic, desperation, you name it, such a circumstance would cause.
Wow! What has become of this country and its collective conscience?
You read it right; HIV was the second leading cause of death overall for CA boomers from 1990-1999. Parceled-out by gender, Table 4 shows it was the leading cause of death for males in that group and the 8th leading cause of death for CA boomer females.
Oh, goodie. A real "happy, happy, joy, joy" subject if there ever was one. But being well past the age of 64 perhaps I dodged the bullet, so to speak.
Having said that with tongue firmly planted in cheek, it's all too real and most unfortunate. One only has to look at the many, economy- income-based threads on this Forum to see what preys heavily on a lot of people's minds.
I can just imagine being, say, 60+, in less than robust health, having lost a major portion of my retirement savings in the recession and being informed by my employer that I am no longer needed.
No! I really can't imagine the senses of dread, hopelessness, helplessness, panic, desperation, you name it, such a circumstance would cause.
Wow! What has become of this country and its collective conscience?
I think we are survivors no matter what. Boomers are smart in many ways and if the worst happens we do have inner resources, unless we've been so spoiled by materialism that we have no survival skills whatsoever. To "not survive" to some would mean canceling travel, golf club memberships, eating out, subscriptions, and parties. I would like to think we have more resilience than that and could survive under any circumstances. If we think we cannot, it could be a fun exercise to think about a worse-case scenario (economy-wise) and what we would do. We'd most likely not be the only ones affected anyway.
With this suicide talk we might want to separate out causes. Suicide from depression, angst, despair is one thing and may or may not have a direct correlation with age. Suicide from being terribly damaged healthwise is another thing. I'd like to see the stats on both, but I doubt many who take their lives leave behind detailed reasons and that those who do receive such notes would share them with "reporters."
I have no idea what is driving this trend but expect changing lifestyles and social values (and maybe reporting) slant the numbers somewhat. I personally know of two suicides and both individuals were drug users (mostly prescribed but clearly impacting perceptions) with negative outlooks regarding health and relationships. I live in an area where doctor assisted suicide is legal.
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