Suicide in Later Life: Recognizing the Warning SignsFor many, the "golden years" are so tarnished they long for an ending. All too often, those who are closest to the elderly miss the warning signs. Here Nancy Osgood describes the symptoms to watch for and addresses the question of how we as a nation can change our attitudes and behavior toward the elderly and take steps to help reduce their risk of suicide. |
Contents
The Tragedy of Suicide in Later Life | 1 |
Suicide Happens in Institutions Too | 4 |
Some Marriages Have Deadly Love Pacts | 5 |
First Murder Then Suicide | 6 |
A Life Sentence for Mercy Killing | 8 |
The Problem of Suicide in Later Life | 9 |
Changing Rates of Suicide | 10 |
AtRisk Elders | 16 |
Who Copes Best with Stress? | 67 |
The Agony of Despair | 69 |
Factors in LaterLife Depression | 72 |
The Picture of LaterLife Depression | 73 |
Depression or Dementia? | 75 |
The AlcoholSuicide Connection | 79 |
The Problem of LaterLife Alcoholism | 81 |
Factors in LaterLife Alcoholism | 86 |
The Future Outlook | 20 |
Growing Old in the Society of the Young | 23 |
The Roots of Ageism in America | 25 |
Myths and Stereotypes about Aging and the Old | 34 |
Sources of Ageism | 38 |
The Effects of Ageism | 46 |
The Season of Losses | 51 |
Physical Loss | 52 |
SensoryPerceptual Loss | 53 |
Cognitive Loss | 54 |
Social Loss | 55 |
Financial Loss | 58 |
Personal and Emotional Loss | 59 |
LaterLife Stress | 62 |
Recognizing LaterLife Stress | 63 |
The Deadly Triangle | 88 |
Signs and Symptoms of LaterLife Alcoholism | 90 |
Clues to LaterLife Suicide | 95 |
Common Characteristics of Suicides | 98 |
Clues to Suicide | 101 |
Keys to Suicide Prevention | 109 |
Societal Measures in Suicide Prevention | 129 |
The Right to Die Is It Right? | 141 |
The Case against Eldercide | 142 |
Later Life Is Worth Living | 150 |
References | 153 |
Acknowledgments | 157 |
| 159 | |
About the Author | |
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Common terms and phrases
65 and older activities aged 65 Ageism alco Alice Sheldon Alzheimer's disease American assisted suicide become behavior Bettelheim Bruno Bettelheim changes cide cognitive commit suicide common cope creative culture death decreased depressed older despair disease drinker drinking drugs Dylan Thomas elderly suicide emotional Ernest Hemingway experience experienced factors in later-life family members feel firearms Frankl health care rationing Hemingway humor images increased Jack James Tiptree Later-Life Alcoholism later-life suicide live loneliness major males MYTH nation negative Norman Cousins nursing home old age older adults older alcoholic older individuals older person older women Osgood percent population problems psychological rate of suicide retirement right to die risk of suicide role self-esteem sleep social society spouse stereotypes Styron suffering suicide and assisted Suicide in Later suicide machine suicide prevention suicide rate symptoms terminal illness tion Viktor Frankl widowed wife William Styron York young younger youth