“I’ve been praying for somebody to save me, no one’s heroic… I’m hurting deep down but can’t show it,” said American singer songwriter, Logic, in his new song titled, 1-800-273-8255, which discusses suicide.
While the UAE ranks low according to World Health Orgaisation ratings, with a statistic of 3.6 deaths for every 100,000 population, recent reports in the country have raised some concerns.
While there are many triggers that can push someone towards ending their life, according to Amity University Counsellor, Hajra Hussain, social media platforms can “influence” suicidal thoughts. She said: “For people who are already susceptible to emotional and psychological stresses, it can increase feelings of isolation.”
Despite this, Hussain believes that it is possible to identify signs of suicidal behavior on such platforms. She said: “If you notice updates or pictures that are negative, and are uncommon to that individual, you should try and connect with them. Change in a person’s language can also help in identifying if someone’s in a good place or not. Phrases like ‘I don’t want to be here’, ‘goodbye’,‘I’m signing out’ are all signs.”
It is important to reach out to people and not let the “stigma of mental health” deter you from helping.
Suicide is often ignored in this region because of the taboo surrounding it, which is why people suffer in silence.
Social media expert and university professor, Sohail Dahlal said that teenagers and young adults find it easier to talk about their feelings online, rather than with friends and family.
He said: “They find it easier to express themselves through emoticons and smaller posts. There’s also an ‘anonymous’ aspect to it.”
Dahlal however stated that we are in the early stages of being able to put context to these words. He said: “Currently, social media is an aiding tool, rather than a prevention tool. Signs are not [obvious] in terms of what people write. The region has a very specific linguistic [aspect] and research found about suicide only pertains to English.”
