Suicidal people’s experiences of trauma and negative life events

Abstract

Suicidal people’s reactions and attitudes to current negative life events must be seen in the light of the frustration of their fundamental needs, their needs—to be seen, loved, and acknowledged—are not only being frustrated in the current situation but have been since early childhood. Suicidal people’s relationships, past and present, have often been characterized by frustration, narcissistic injury, and rejection. Similarly, their current emotional and cognitive perceptions and reactions are usually loaded with memories and feelings associated with early object losses and a negative emotional climate in the family home. Their parents may have been strict, quick to punish, lacking in empathy, and sometimes indifferent, unemotional, or overprotective, thus overstepping the normal limits of the parental role and failing to respond to the child’s needs. With a lack of good examples of communication skills and behaviour during childhood and with suicidal behaviour experienced as a model in the family home, suicidal people tend towards self-destructive acts as a ‘way out’ when negative life events bring their lack of self-confirmation to the fore. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)