My younger sister died by suicide. Can science succeed in helping others?

Pedro_P

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At a suicide prevention event, luminaria memorialize those who have died and honor those who are struggling.Nick Otto/AFSP
▼ When my younger sister died by suicide 7 years ago, at age 30, the loss was shattering. If I considered the role of science at all, it was through the lens of failure—its failure to save her, along with the thousands who died before and after. More often, I pushed science aside. Given the mysteries of brain chemistry and its confluence with life experience, could science really decipher what drives an individual to want to die? Could it predict who is most at risk and find ways to intervene in the face of grim obstacles? I was doubtful.
At first glance, statistics seemed to back this gloomy outlook. The suicide rate in the United States is rising, and more than 47,000 people died in 2017. Among 10- to 34-year-olds in the United States, suicide is the second leading cause of death; for 35- to 54-year-olds, it ranks fourth.
Yet, in most countries, suicide rates are dropping. Sri Lanka, Cuba, Switzerland, (▪ ▪ ▪)

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