Rural isolation and recession contribute to Kerry suicides, suicide prevention group says

Rural isolation and recession are among the factors that may have contributed to the deaths by suicide of five men recorded by South Kerry Coroner Terence Casey this week, the chief executive of Pieta House has said.

Joan Freeman said men living in rural areas faced enormous challenges regardless of their age.

Yesterday, of the six inquests before the coroner, five were recorded as deaths by suicide. Two of the young men were 16 years of age, one was 21, one 22 and one 30. At the previous coroner’s court presided over by Mr Casey three months ago, seven out of eight deaths were by suicide.

Ms Freeman said 10 people die by suicide in Ireland every week and of those, eight are men. The second highest rate of male suicide was in rural areas in men over the age of 50. Isolation and loneliness were particular problems, she said. The recession was also contributing to growth in the rate of suicide.

Winter
"People react to a life event – losing a job, having difficulty finding a job . . . in any country that suffers recession suicide rates will increase automatically," she said. Winter may also have been a contributory factor in the recent Kerry suicides. In the dark evenings and short days people may become inactive, Ms Freeman said.

“All these things culminate in a person, a man in particular, feeling very, very low.”

But she did not believe Kerry was unique. She said the rate of suicide was being under-reported across the country with drownings and single car crashes that may have been suicides excluded.

“This is a nationwide problem,” she said.

Pieta House, the centre for the prevention of self-harm and suicide, recently launched a campaign, Mind Our Men, to help the friends, families and colleagues of men who might be vulnerable to suicide to recognise the signs and tipping points.

Among the signs are enforced isolation, including switching off mobiles and disengaging from social media, a change in performance at work or school, a sudden loss of interest in hobbies and the use of suicidal language.

Sleep disturbance can also be one of the biggest factors causing despair, Ms Freeman said. And tipping points for suicide may include redundancy, retirement, unemployment, business failure, “losing face at work”, as well as any loss of a significant relationship.

“That is a very difficult area for men to deal with,” she said.

For support and information visit pietahouse.ie.