The Impact of Suicide and Grief on Mental Health

Federal Centers for Disease Control on suicide risks and prevention: 

The federal Centers for Disease Control lists the following factors as risk factors for suicide: 

• Previous suicide attempt
• History of depression and other mental illnesses
• Serious illness such as chronic pain
• Criminal/legal problems
• Job/financial problems or loss
• Impulsive or aggressive tendencies
• Substance use
• Current or prior history of adverse childhood experiences
• Sense of hopelessness
• Violence victimization and/or perpetration

Relationship Risk Factors

• Bullying
• Family/loved one’s history of suicide
• Loss of relationships
• High conflict or violent relationships
• Social isolation

Community Risk Factors

These challenging issues within a person’s community contribute to risk:

• Lack of access to healthcare
• Suicide cluster in the community
• Stress of acculturation
• Community violence
• Historical trauma
• Discrimination

Societal Risk Factors

These cultural and environmental factors within the larger society contribute to risk:

• Stigma associated with help-seeking and mental illness
• Easy access to lethal means of suicide among people at risk
• Unsafe media portrayals of suicide

The research also lists factors that reduce the risk of suicide

Individual Protective Factors

These personal factors protect against suicide risk:

• Effective coping and problem-solving skills
• Reasons for living (for example, family, friends, pets, etc.)
• Strong sense of cultural identity

Relationship Protective Factors

These healthy relationship experiences protect against suicide risk:

• Support from partners, friends, and family
• Feeling connected to others

Community Protective Factors

These supportive community experiences protect against suicide risk:

• Feeling connected to school, community, and other social institutions
• Availability of consistent and high quality physical and behavioral healthcare

Societal Protective Factors:

These cultural and environmental factors within the larger society protect against suicide risk:

• Reduced access to lethal means of suicide among people at risk
• Cultural, religious, or moral objections to suicide

Centers for Disease Control Suicide Facts

Suicide is a leading cause of death.

Many factors can increase the risk for suicide or protect against it. Suicide is connected to other forms of injury and violence. For example, people who have experienced violence, including child abuse, bullying, or sexual violence have a higher suicide risk. Being connected to family and community support and having easy access to healthcare can decrease suicidal thoughts and behaviors. 

Suicide is a serious public health problem.

Belonging, safety, dignity and hope can support resilience and healing for individuals and communities and protect against suicide.

Suicide rates increased approximately 36% between 2000–2021. Suicide was responsible for 48,183 deaths in 2021, which is about one death every 11 minutes. The number of people who think about or attempt suicide is even higher. In 2021, an estimated 12.3 million American adults seriously thought about suicide, 3.5 million planned a suicide attempt, and 1.7 million attempted suicide.

Suicide affects people of all ages. In 2021, suicide was among the top 9 leading causes of death for people ages 10-64. Suicide was the second leading cause of death for people ages 10-14 and 20-34.3

Some groups have higher suicide rates than others. Suicide rates vary by race/ethnicity, age, and other factors, such as where someone lives. 

• By race/ethnicity, the groups with the highest rates are non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native people followed by non-Hispanic White people.
• Other Americans with higher-than-average rates of suicide are veterans, people who live in rural areas, and workers in certain industries and occupations like mining and construction.
• Young people who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual have higher prevalence of suicidal thoughts and behavior compared to their peers who identify as heterosexual.
•  Read more about these suicide disparities and why they exist on the Health Disparities in Suicide webpage.

Suicide has far-reaching impact.

Suicide and suicide attempts cause serious emotional, physical, and economic impacts. People who attempt suicide and survive may experience serious injuries that can have long-term effects on their health. They may also experience depression and other mental health concerns.

Suicide and suicide attempts affect the health and well-being of friends, loved ones, co-workers, and the community. When people die by suicide, their surviving family and friends may experience prolonged grief, shock, anger, guilt, symptoms of depression or anxiety, and even thoughts of suicide themselves.

The financial toll of suicide on society is high. In 2020, suicide and nonfatal self-harm cost the nation over $500 billion in medical costs, work loss costs, value of statistical life, and quality of life costs.

Suicidal behavior also has far-reaching impact:

There were 46,412 suicides among adults in 2021. But suicides are just the tip of the iceberg. For every suicide death*, there were about:

• 3 hospitalizations for self-harm
• 8 emergency department visits related to suicide
• 38 self-reported suicide attempts in the past year
• 265 people who seriously considered suicide in the past year

*Based on the latest year of available data for adults ages 18 and older.

Suicide Prevention Resource for Action

Suicide is preventable and everyone has a role to play to save lives and create healthy and strong individuals, families, and communities. Suicide prevention requires a comprehensive public health approach. CDC developed the Suicide Prevention Resource for Action (Prevention Resource), which provides information on the best available evidence for suicide prevention. States and communities can use the Prevention Resource to help make decisions about suicide prevention activities. Strategies range from those designed to support people at increased risk to a focus on the whole population, regardless of risk.

Strengthen economic supports

• Improve household financial security
• Stabilize housing

Create protective environments

• Reduce access to lethal means among persons at risk of suicide
• Create healthy organizational policies and culture
• Reduce substance use through community-based policies and practices

Improve access and delivery of suicide care

• Cover mental health conditions in health insurance policies
• Increase provider availability in underserved areas
• Provide rapid and remote access to help
• Create safer suicide care through systems change

Promote healthy connections

• Promote healthy peer norms
• Engage community members in shared activities

Teach coping and problem-solving skills

• Support social-emotional learning programs
• Teach parenting skills to improve family relationships
• Support resilience through education programs

Identify and support people at risk

• Train gatekeepers
• Respond to crises
• Plan for safety and follow-up after an attempt
• Provide therapeutic approaches

Lessen harms and prevent future risk

• Intervene after a suicide (postvention)
• Report and message about suicide safely

Need help? Know someone who does?

Contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline if you are experiencing mental health-related distress or are worried about a loved one who may need crisis support.

• Call or text 988
• Chat at 988lifeline.org

Connect with a trained crisis counselor. 988 is confidential, free, and available 24/7/365.

Visit the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline for more information at 988lifeline.org.

Do you know the warning signs for suicide?

If someone is at risk for suicide, you can watch for warning signs, including:

• Talking about being a burden
• Being isolated
• Increased anxiety
• Talking about feeling trapped or in unbearable pain
• Increased substance use
• Looking for a way to access lethal means
• Increased anger or rage
• Extreme mood swings
• Expressing hopelessness
• Sleeping too little or too much
• Talking or posting about wanting to die
• Making plans for suicide

Read CDC’s June 2018 VitalSigns edition to learn more.