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Comedian or not, is it just me, or do others see suicide as a selfish act? I know depression can really bring a person down and terminal diseases can be agony, but killing yourself devastates the family left behind. Just as an offspring wonders if the cancer that killed the parent will claim them, kids (even grown up ones) wonder if they are prone to suicide, too. If a person kills himself or herself in the home, the family can’t feel comfortable in the room or the house.
Putting aside any religious taboo to suicide, because some religions have no problem with it, I would care too much about the ones I leave behind to entertain such selfish thoughts.

Yes, it is a selfish act. But I have to believe that the suicidal person is so drastically confused and clouded in his or her thinking, that they cannot grasp the idea of the selfishness of the act. We had a suicide in the family just three weeks ago, exactly one month after the birth of the only grandchild of the “victim” of suicide. My initial reaction was anger at the selfishness of her act; I have since tried to come to some pity for her, that she felt so desperate as to really not have hope or to comprehend the tidal wave of devastation for the survivors.

Comedian or not, is it just me, or do others see suicide as a selfish act? I know depression can really bring a person down and terminal diseases can be agony, but killing yourself devastates the family left behind.

Absolutely selfish. But if he indeed had bipolar disorder, I don't believe he was in complete control of his decision.

When the brain triggers a manic depressive state in bipolar, the person can't recall any happiness, any love, any goodness in life. They believe that they've never been happy and never will be.

They remember every bad experience, and fail to recall any good ones. They can't save themselves by worrying about how their death will affect their loved ones because in their manic state, nobody loves them. Nobody ever has cared, or will care. They can't comprehend that their actions are messing up their future, because in their minds, they have already blown their future.

They can't turn to religion and the love of Christ or fear of hell to stop it. Because their brain is telling them that Christ himself doesn't love them. That they are destined and fully deserving of hell. I can't comprehend how awful it would be to have my brain telling me that. Must be like Satan himself inside your brain.

Then, as quickly as that, if you can be by their side during the episode, they come out of it. They become normal for a while, weeks, months perhaps. I believe the key is to be there when it happens. To call an ambulance, the police, or drive to the hospital when necessary.

With bipolar, their manic episodes can also swing to the other side of the spectrum. They are the life of the party. They are the funniest, or most artistic person you've ever met. You marvel that this person can really go places with their talent. Or, to the extreme, they look like Daffy Duck in one of the old cartoons, bouncing off the walls, laughing , yelling and getting out of hand with their "positivity". They decide on a project, or hobby that you just know they'll lose interest in soon enough.

So, in my opinion, bipolar just plain sucks. Suicide is wrong and NEVER the answer. But I will never pretend to know what a person in that state could have done to save themselves. I will not condemn a person for this decision, but will pity them and their loved ones and pray that they have found healing and peace.

Suicide as “selfish act”...Part of me thinks it depends on the cause of the mental condition...30 years ago after my father died I found out my father’s father committed suicide by hanging himself in the family home. My father was 14 and an only child. Knowing that caused MANY dominoes to fall into place about my father...an alcoholic who married several times. I have come to say my father spent his life committing suicide. ..with alcohol. And it leaves a mark on generations to follow...