Best friend tried committing suicide last night

stylo17

saw his ex-gf with another guy at night, but she didn't want to talk to him. when he got home his mind was racing and he was going nuts and not thinking. he took 80 pills of Excedrin.... at the hospital he was throwing up for hours straight, drinking this liquid charcoal thing to make him vomit all the crap out of his insides. he's doing much better now, they moved him to ICU because he's still a suicide risk. but he's talking and acting like everything is okay and has already said how much of a dumbass he is. seeing his little 9 year old sister frustrated and crying because she couldn't be with him made a big impression on him.

but 18 years old doing something like this, it's not right. very sad to see. his parents are handling it well, unfortunately they're divorced so it's awkward for him. I have no emotions right now, when I see him he's laughing and talking, but when I step back and see the big picture, I see that he should be dead, and at the very least be on dialysis for his liver for the rest of his life. he's perfectly healthy right now.

the only song that's soothing me is Jeff Buckley's "Hallelujah." I'm so blown away by everything right now and life has never seemed so beautiful :(

gobrowns19

I don't even know what to say, very touching. Sad and happy at the same time.

stylo17

gobrowns19 wrote:

I don't even know what to say, very touching. Sad and happy at the same time.

it is, I just wish it didn't take something so extreme to teach us how many people love us and how great life really is.

GraySaturday

I'm really sorry for your friend, that he has to go through pain like that. And for you, for the same reasons. He's very lucky to have a second chance. Excedrine is some powerful stuff. I get terrible migraines and a doctor told me to take 3 excedrines to try to control it, and even 3 made me throw up and feel horrible. I can't imagine 80.

I hope his family is able to help him find the help he needs, and he can make peace with his situation. He's got a LONG life ahead of him. Its hard to see the big picture when you're 18, but he's got a long while to go. Best of luck to him. And remember, as much as its crazy, and heartbreaking and frustrating and everything in between, be the best support system you can be. He sounds like he needs everyone to rally behind him right now.

stylo17

GraySaturday wrote:

I'm really sorry for your friend, that he has to go through pain like that. And for you, for the same reasons. He's very lucky to have a second chance. Excedrine is some powerful stuff. I get terrible migraines and a doctor told me to take 3 excedrines to try to control it, and even 3 made me throw up and feel horrible. I can't imagine 80.

I hope his family is able to help him find the help he needs, and he can make peace with his situation. He's got a LONG life ahead of him. Its hard to see the big picture when you're 18, but he's got a long while to go. Best of luck to him. And remember, as much as its crazy, and heartbreaking and frustrating and everything in between, be the best support system you can be. He sounds like he needs everyone to rally behind him right now.

thank you, I think we all learned from this today

sponger

Ouch. Even if he lives through it, his liver might be permanently damaged. Acetaminophen, also known as tylenol, is a major ingredient in excedrine and literally fries the liver when taken in excess quantities. So sorry to hear about that.

Fifthelement

Sorry about your friend. I'm glad for him and his family that he survived. And for you as well. Hopefully, as he thinks on this he'll come to the realisation that life is worth holding on to. Peace!

sponger

I just hope that when I try to commit suicide, someone will post it on the pit so everyone can respond with their messages of concern.

Byrnzie

This is one of those incidents when any and all advice falls flat - the emotions/instincts came before the intellect, and are a lot stronger.
Just glad he didn't succeed.

sponger

Just goes to show how important it is for kids to grow up in a home consisting of both a mother and a father. The support network just wasn't there for him. He may have done this over heartbreak, but that's just a symptom of a much larger issue.

urbanhippie

Just be there for him in any way you can. No recriminations, no blame, no accusations.
He needs the strongest support network possible at the moment, but don't neglect your own feelings about this. Find a neutral place where you can express your own hurt and disappointment at this situation. You're bound to feel it, don't feel guilty about that.

Heineken Helen

Byrnzie wrote:

This is one of those incidents when any and all advice falls flat - the emotions/instincts came before the intellect, and are a lot stronger.
Just glad he didn't succeed.

Nice post byrnzie

I'm sorry stylo... did he try something like this before? I have a deja vu feeling about this story?

18... wow! If I had known then what I know now springs to mind :(

stylo17

Heineken Helen wrote:

Nice post byrnzie

I'm sorry stylo... did he try something like this before? I have a deja vu feeling about this story?

18... wow! If I had known then what I know now springs to mind :(

thanks everyone.

actually this is the first time anything like this happened. and hopefully when the psychiatrists go evaluate him today, they see that he doesn't have a mental issue. but if they decide to keep him for a month then so be it, his parents just want him to be better and ready for the real world.

catefrances

stylo17 wrote:

thanks everyone.

actually this is the first time anything like this happened. and hopefully when the psychiatrists go evaluate him today, they see that he doesn't have a mental issue. but if they decide to keep him for a month then so be it, his parents just want him to be better and ready for the real world.

are you sure he doesnt have 'a mental issue'? people don't usually try to commit suicide just cause. theres an underlying factor that it forced by some catalyst.

orig_long red

he wants attention.

looks like he got it.

noisy mind

18 years old and willing to die over a girl.

I'm not a fan of this kid's decision.

you are

glad he's ok. hope he continues to get better.

Slip Kid

noisy mind wrote:

18 years old and willing to die over a girl.

I'm not a fan of this kid's decision.

I was thinking the same thing

Jeremy1012

noisy mind wrote:

18 years old and willing to die over a girl.

I'm not a fan of this kid's decision.

Most people are probably more likely to want to die over a girl at 18 than as a middle-aged person. At 18 it really can feel like life doesn't go on because, let's face it, if it's the first time you've felt that shitty, you haven't had proof that life does go on yet.

It was a rash, foolish decision but one that should be met with sympathy and understanding, not cynicism.

Clarice

Sorry for you friend. And for you too.

I´ts very difficult knows exactly what happens with mind of someone, even so close you. I´m sure you will take care him and it will help.

Kisses

Ledbetterman10

sponger wrote:

I just hope that when I try to commit suicide, someone will post it on the pit so everyone can respond with their messages of concern.

I have to say, I was sort of thinking the same thing. I mean, it's a message board so stylo17 is as anonymous as any of us are...so we don't know exactly who he's talking about. but still, I wouldn't want my personal business aired out to a bunch of strangers on the internet.

I personally don't suicide threads on here (this is hardly the first) because then we start getting responses like this from people who don't even know who they're talking about:

long red wrote:

he wants attention.

looks like he got it.

noisy mind wrote:

18 years old and willing to die over a girl.

I'm not a fan of this kid's decision.

I think long red and noisy mind are entitled to these opinions, though I couldn't disagree more with them. but they wouldn't be posting them if there wasn't a suicide thread. are we this desperate for stuff to talk about?

I dunno, people don't really understand suicide. It more of a psychological disorder than a stupid decision.

Clarice

Ledbetterman10 wrote:

It more of a psychological disorder than a stupid decision.

No doubts.

libragirl

I'm sorry about your friend and I'm glad he's okay.

Collin

Sorry to hear about your friend, but glad to hear he didn't succeed. Just be there for him.

Ledbetterman10 wrote:

I dunno, people don't really understand suicide. It more of a psychological disorder than a stupid decision.

"he's talking and acting like everything is okay and has already said how much of a dumbass he is"

I know it's sort of rude to say it was a stupid decision, but sometimes it's just that.

sponger

I think this girl whoever she is owes him a BJ.

meistereder

sponger wrote:

I think this girl whoever she is owes him a BJ.

Haha.

Yeah, I have to say this reminds me of those news stories about the 17 year old kids from good homes who kill themselves because they got a D on a math test. It's so unimportant in the grand scheme of things, but they have no idea about life yet at that age.

comebackwoman

Collin wrote:

Sorry to hear about your friend, but glad to hear he didn't succeed. Just be there for him.




"he's talking and acting like everything is okay and has already said how much of a dumbass he is"

I know it's sort of rude to say it was a stupid decision, but sometimes it's just that.

There are a few disorders that are marked by impulsivity and rapidly shifting moods...so it may be difficult for some people to cope with overwhelming feelings to be able to get through to the next moment where they can view their problems with more perspective. Drugs and alcohol will impact this...as can his age. I don't know if any of these issues are at play here, but what looks like attention seeking may actually be a much deeper issue.

Anyway...the hospital is unlikely to release your friend without first arranging some follow-up care. Hopefully he'll follow through on it. It sounds like at the very least he could use some support and coping skills. I'm glad he didn't succeed in his attempt and sorry that you have been impacted by something like this.

Collin

comebackgirl wrote:

There are a few disorders that are marked by impulsivity and rapidly shifting moods...so it may be difficult for some people to cope with overwhelming feelings to be able to get through to the next moment where they can view their problems with more perspective. Drugs and alcohol will impact this...as can his age. I don't know if any of these issues are at play here, but what looks like attention seeking may actually be a much deeper issue.

I don't disagree with that. I'm just saying that sometimes it's not a mental disorder. Sometimes it's just kids being stupid or looking for attention.

comebackwoman

Collin wrote:

I don't disagree with that. I'm just saying that sometimes it's not a mental disorder. Sometimes it's just kids being stupid or looking for attention.

I agree - as some people have said - sometimes it's just the inability to see beyond today. Just hoping he gets whatever kind of support is going to be most helpful for him.

Collin

comebackgirl wrote:

I agree - as some people have said - sometimes it's just the inability to see beyond today. Just hoping he gets whatever kind of support is going to be most helpful for him.

Indeed.

Many of my friends had suicidal thoughts when they were 15-18, including my girlfriend at the time, which was quite hard for me. And now they're all past that but sometimes I think about how we all felt and how dark our world seemed at the time. What's worse is I have a few friends now that are 16-17 who have these same thought (I'm 20 by the way). We talk about it a lot and I tell them what we went through and how we felt and how it does get better and they want to believe me and they do believe me, but they still feel as miserable and trapped. I think they're kind of glad they can talk to someone about it who's older, even though I'm only three or four years older.

stylo17

thank you all for your comments/concern.

I just got back from the hospital. the psychiatrists were going to come today but because of insurance difficulties (what else is new?) another group had to be called. they'll be at the hospital tomorrow, hopefully.

I hope he goes to a psych. ward because I really don't believe that he understands what really happened to him and his family agrees with me. this isn't something that just HAPPENS and he needs to understand that he now has an opportunity to talk to someone about his feelings and difficulties. even if it means going to a shrink once a week for the rest of his life then so be it, we just want him happy and ready to live life.