Attempted suicide at work

[Antisocial_Worker]

When I got home this morning from the night shift, I heard about it from my roommate, who works days. On her shift yesterday, one of her coworkers tried to drink a bottle of paint thinner she swiped from the lab and would have killed herself there on the production floor had someone not gotten the bottle away from her.

Later, in the break room, my roommate, who isn't necessarily known for her tact, had a "come to Jesus" meeting with the girl. My roommate pointed out that the girl has three children and that she was officially now the most selfish bitch she'd ever known. Think of those kids. Think of your coworkers. It ended with the girl in tears. Before the end of shift, one of the other girls volunteered to ride home with her only to be told that as soon as she, the volunteer, was dropped off, she, the suicide attempter, was going to drive off someplace where no one would ever find her.

To prevent this, my roommate called the attempter's parents.

And as of today, they're having her committed to the state mental hospital a couple of counties away.

[clod75]

OMG that is so sad... Geez I hope that she gets the help she needs.

[GingerBiscuit]

Later, in the break room, my roommate, who isn't necessarily known for her tact, had a "come to Jesus" meeting with the girl. My roommate pointed out that the girl has three children and that she was officially now the most selfish bitch she'd ever known. Think of those kids. Think of your coworkers. It ended with the girl in tears. Before the end of shift, one of the other girls volunteered to ride home with her only to be told that as soon as she, the volunteer, was dropped off, she, the suicide attempter, was going to drive off someplace where no one would ever find her.

T

You know what? I'm sorry, but reactions like your roommates NEVER help anyone when they're like that. Telling a suicidal person that they are just selfish- even if it's true- makes it worse.

You are NOT logical when you are feeling that bad. You can not rationalize and be reasonable with your reactions. Anger and shouting just make them worse.

When I tried to commit suicide, one of my friends told me I was selfish. I tried doubly hard that night and never spoke to them again,

[Antisocial_Worker]

You know what? I'm sorry, but reactions like your roommates NEVER help anyone when they're like that. Telling a suicidal person that they are just selfish- even if it's true- makes it worse.

You are NOT logical when you are feeling that bad. You can not rationalize and be reasonable with your reactions. Anger and shouting just make them worse.

When I tried to commit suicide, one of my friends told me I was selfish. I tried doubly hard that night and never spoke to them again,

I know. I've been there, and almost got locked into a disused office at the doctor's when I wouldn't calm down after a particularly bad diagnosis. In the end, they didn't have to use restraints or lock me in anywhere, but I did have to wait for the on-staff psychiatrist to come back from lunch.

However... I will say this for my roommate. She was the first person I saw after that diagnosis, and her first reaction upon hearing it from me was to give me a big hug. I really appreciated that. It was a diagnosis that can make some people afraid to touch you or be in the same room as you, too.

Perhaps it was just the shock of things that led her to take the approach she did.

[Bright_Star]

What's that supposed to accomplish by putting her into a mental institution cause she tried to kill herself? She isn't crazy-she's just crying out for help & that's not the way to go about it. So what the fuck are they gonna do-throw her in there, lock her up & throw away the keys & forget about her as if she never existed?

[Jester]

Bright Star, mental hospitals are not the asylums of old, for the most part. I am guessing that her parents are doing just what you said needs to be done--getting her some professional help. At the moment, the woman is clearly a danger to herself, and possibly to her children at well. I would say her parents actions were probably the right thing to do.

[digilight]

In the institution they can give her the help that she needs. If she needs medication to get out of the suicidal depresion than she will have ready access to it. And she won't take away her kids mother perminantly if she is in the hospital getting help.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

There was a well-known businessman in my city who killed himself by drinking windshield washer fluid.

That's got to be a terrible way to go.

And I agree with those saying that yelling at the person wasn't the right thing to do. I imagine it would make the person want to kill themselves twice as much, as a "fuck you" to the people who yelled.

But at least she is getting the help she needs. Mental institutions today are not the lock-'em-up-and-throw-away-the-key "loony bins" they once were.

[Antisocial_Worker]

I found out from my roommate that the girl has been prescribed medication for depression but that she won't take it because she thinks she doesn't need it. I think her parents did the right thing by putting her in the hospital. There, she won't have a choice but to take it and hopefully that will make all the difference.

As an aside, the mental hospital that serves this part of NC actually is one of those those scary old Victorian hospitals, the kind that look as though if you weren't crazy when you went in, you definitely would be when you came out again. It's just the facade though... Behind the spooky Victorian brickwork, they're doing good work.

[rerant]

What's that supposed to accomplish by putting her into a mental institution cause she tried to kill herself? She isn't crazy-she's just crying out for help & that's not the way to go about it. So what the fuck are they gonna do-throw her in there, lock her up & throw away the keys & forget about her as if she never existed?

Well, getting her psychiatric help, for one.
I don't know why people have such poor views of psychiatric hospitals when they do a great service to people who need it and would otherwise be labeled "crazy" and ignored or avoided.

What would be accomplished if she hadn't been brought to the hospital? She may very well have taken her own life, and what good would that have done?
Taking her to the hospital was the best possible thing.

Even if it was only a cry for help and not a legitimate attempt that cry for help could turn into something very dangerous and taking her to see professionals is nipping a potentially devastating problem in the bud.

Members of my family have been helped greatly by psychiatric hospitals and I am behind them 100%. They do a great service and help thousands of people who the rest of us don't usually understand.

[cinema guy]

I have to say I kind of wish I'd been given a short stay after my second suicide attempt. Depression is such that normal everyday living can be a real struggle.

[ravenrose]

Speaking as someone who's been there, done that, and all I got was this lousy t-shirt, I say she's pretty darn lucky. She has people who care enough to stop and say "wait, that's not right", and make her get the help she needs. I don't necessarily agree with the roommate's first approach, but I will give her props for calling the girl's parents.

It doesn't matter that she doesn't want to take the meds, so long as she stays there. The docs will get through to her, that's what they're there for. They won't release her if they still believe she is a viable threat to her own (or others) safety, especially if her parents are making sure the children are taken care of.

They call them "behavioral health centers" where I'm at, and they're basically lock-down hospital wards. Only difference is that the beds are not as comfortable as "hospital beds", and you're "escorted" everywhere. I was actually more concerned with the fact that there seemed to be almost more people in there that were only there because it was that, or jail.

But I'm really glad I was sent there. They're there to help.

[Teysa]

I spent some time in the psychiatric ward at the local hospital a few years ago. While I would not like to repeat the experiences that put me there, it helped quite a bit. Hopefully, Hauntedhead's coworker will benefit from her stay.