Customer Reviews

Suicide and Attempted Suicide: Methods and Consequences

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

(...)this is a book about which it's hard to be neutral. If you think that suicide is always wrong, a sin, or a crime, you won't like it: the book provides lots of "how-to" information that can be used to commit suicide. But at the same time there is an anti-suicide thread running through the text---time and again, the author suggests delay, alternatives, and medical treatment, so the in-your-face pro-suicide crowd (small, but vocal) won't be happy either. Further, the author's website contains, among other things, lots of grisly photos that seem intended to discourage suicide.

Unlike Gaul, the book is divided into two parts. The first half is an overview of suicide, covering history, causes of suicide (considered through sociology, psychiatry, and biology), American and Dutch end-of-life medical practices, and a few related areas. Compressed into a little over a hundred pages, this broad coverage is not terribly detailed but functions well as a summary and is both interesting and well done.

The second half describes, with sometimes weirdly-fascinating factoids, what is known about suicide methods (the "how-to" part) and their medical consequences (the "why-you-probably-shouldn't-try-them" part). If you're interested in suicide methods, this is the best source of information available. If you're not, there's far more information here than you want to know. Trust me.

The book's layout is poor. References are in the back organized by chapter, but pages in the text don't have chapter headers, so it's easy to lose your place, whilst flipping back and forth. Footnotes are at the end of each chapter instead of at the bottom of the page, another annoying practise, and there are a surprising number of typso. <g>

In sum, if you want to know why people kill themselves, there are better sources. If you want to know how, this is your book.

This is the definitive book on the subject, exhaustively researched, and yet quite readable...

As I read this book, I was struck that this is not so much about suicide, as about self-determination (...). I began reading this out of a sense of professional obligation, but quickly found the book surprisingly interesting. There is a wealth of detail presented, with the solid and sobering information relieved by the often wickedly amusing (albeit occasionally warped) footnotes.

While the "how to" sections are quite graphic, the reader can readily find areas of interest through the clear chapter subheadings, and thereby skip those that might be either too gory or too technical. But the detail presented is here out of necessity-for how else can the individual make an informed decision?

This book clearly does not advocate suicide. It provides individuals with the information to make a better decision about their future. For example, if someone wishes to make a gesture, it gives them guidance about appropriate choices that will not leave them off in an even worse state.

As a physician, I was a bit put off by the author's criticism of docs. I think he underestimates the chilling effect the threat of professional criticism and repercussions has. Of course, there is also the effect fear of more serious legal action (eg charges of murder) has on the willingness of physicians to be more active in this area. This extends to efforts in the area of pain relief (such as by providing adequate doses of morphine) which are often inappropriately criticized as excessive. Also, as he notes, docs have been very poorly educated regarding pain control.

I highly recommend this thorough reference work, the most definitive work I have seen on this controversial subject. It is far more than a "how to" manual. It is both a reference book, as well as a thoughtful resource, providing objective information, historical information, and perspective on this difficult topic.

This is an odd, idiosyncratic, fascinating, uneven, irritating, and important book: there's nothing out there like it. "Suicide and Attempted Suicide" is primarily a study of suicide methods---how people try to kill themselves (or, more often, try to get attention or help). It reads as if it were written by more than one author, or over an extended period of time: the tone bounces unpredictably from didactic to ironic to funny (be sure to read the chapter endnotes!).

The first half of the book touches on a wide range of suicide topics: history of suicide, the legal situation, treatment options, terminal illness, philosophical issues, euthanasia and assisted suicide. The information is interesting and well enough presented, but tries to cover too much ground in too few pages. A reader unfamiliar with this material will find it a reasonable, though patchy, introduction that can be followed up from the author's well-chosen "suggested reading" list.

The heart of the book is the second half, where it discusses suicide methods and their consequences in clinical detail. This treatment will surely be controversial, since the author provides "how to" (and "how not to") information that can be used either to commit suicide or to carry out a suicidal gesture.

I've seen only one other book that takes a similar approach, Derek Humphry's "Final Exit" to which this book will inevitably be compared. "Suicide and Attempted Suicide" is the far more comprehensive and detailed work, which is both its strength and its weakness. There is no better---in fact no other---book that discusses the variety of suicide methods in any significant depth. However the large amount of information comes at a cost: a suicidal reader may have a hard time extracting the data he wants from the mass of data he doesn't need. Similarly, the casual reader will probably find the quantity and details of evidence overwhelming.

The writing style is rather pedestrian, which doesn't detract much from a book of this sort, but occasionally slips into "medicalese" which does. On the other hand there are quite a few interesting and informative asides and digressions. These range from early Christian theological disputes, to minimizing heat loss in marine mammals, to the words of Jim Jones (remember Jonestown?) at an anti-suicide rally in San Francisco.

Given the sometimes-gory descriptions, the absence of photos and drawings is a bit surprising. However the author says in a "note to the reader" that these will be available on his website.

Overall, flaws and all, I highly recommend this book for anyone who has seriously considered suicide, or is presently contemplating it. With more reservations---the first half has too little detail, the second half too much---I would recommend it for general readers as well.

This book contains some of the most insightful interpretation of statistical data and superlative research in forensic pathology.

There are two sections in this book. The first section analyzes the social, psychological and biological aspect of suicide in history and at present time, in the US and all around the world. There are some powerful conclusions, such as gun ownership does not necessarily contribute to higher suicide rate, that are counter-intuitive but extremely convincing.

The second part of the book deals with various suicide methods. The tone in this section is notably different from the first part, as if it is another book by another author. Numerous forensic works are quoted here. However, there are some assertions that seem to me novel and dubious, like the author states, without reference, that the carotid artery is on the right side of the neck and the vein is on the left.

While the content of the book is superior, the format is less impressive. The references of each chapter are bundled together at the end of the book; and there's no indication on each page which chapter you are in. This makes it very hard to go from a sentence to its reference. I believe the publisher should be more considerate about the format of this book.

Nontheless, this is a top-notch, definitive work on the subject, infinitely better than Mr. Derek Humphry's.

When I was 11 years old, my brother and I were walking to our favorite swimming spot on the Colorado River. We passed through a dusty, overgrown lot where an old man had been living in his trailer. We saw him working around his car, with a tube that he'd taped to his exhaust pipe. He looked up, smiled and waved. When my bro and I were done with our swim, we walked home the same way we'd came. We noticed the old man's car running...amber smoke in the car, the long tube taped from his exhaust pipe to the rear window...his head was leaning against the passenger window. We knew then that he'd killed himself.
The thing that strikes me about that memory is the peace that I saw in the old guy's face prior to his making his exit. He wasn't obviously tormented - he looked happily resolved. And if my life was deteriorating in an uncomfortable and irreversible way for myself, I'd like to think I have the backbone to go ahead and pull the plug like he did. Why is there so much stigma attached to this act? I guess the key word here is "irreversible". Some dire situations, certain emotional pains - seem to have no end, so suicide appears to be the best solution to some people...in the moment. If they'd just work through the pain of a temporary situation...they can go on to a happier existence. Is this a dangerous book for people at that threshold? My life partner reacted badly to the mere idea of my owning this book, and brought that point up. I reminded him that he and I come from a generation that was used to hiding all the smut and dirty little details of reality...the new generation is the "Information Age". If a person really wants to learn how to do something, they can research it on the net and forums dedicated to certain controversial topics. But this book DISSUADES someone from making a foolhardy gesture - going into detail about the consequences (pain/crippling) of certain common methods of trying to "dispatch" oneself. It's presented in a very realistic, responsible way. If I had to lose my entire library and only keep one book - this would be the one book that I would keep - tucked safely under my arm - as a valuable reference for the moment I might need it in the (hopefully distant) future. Throughout the tumultuous journey that is life, I find great comfort in having my guidebook, my "map", of how to gracefully, and with dignity, be able to find my final resting place - should I need it.

XXX...As a final note to this review; I found out later that the old man my brother and I saw commit suicide had been pining for his life-long sweetheart, who had died the previous year...in addition to facing grave health problems of his own. I used to go into his abandoned trailer to play "Go-Fish" with my little friends, and never felt weird about what I'd witnessed. I felt like he would have welcomed me being there.
I wish people would start giving up their fear of death in our narrow-minded little western society. Other, comparitively primitive societies have much healthier and more realistic attitudes than we do.

This is clearly the work of a man deeply steeped in his own moral compass which is nothing but laudable. I would say it is worth reading this book simply for it's strength of character; as an example of what happens when someone looks deeply into a social phenomenon, then deeply into their soul, then expresses the result in a clear, concise way.

Yes this book is challenging to the reader: if you have ANY fear of some means of death or injury (who doesn't?) then there will be some part of the book that defies you to keep staring at the clinical reality of the situation.

Yet Stone makes his case with emotion, feeling and yes, humor -- but never without the utmost respect for those considering suicide or those reaching for help in a desperate act. Never once did I feel Stone was judging the subject or the reader. He saved all that for the system and those that perpetuate it.

I read this book a year ago and it's principles have stayed with me and inspired me to me more open, generous and thoughtful.

Thanks.

I finally was able to get a copy of this book through interlibrary loan. The unanimous critical praise and popular demand hopefully will convince the publisher to soon release another printing.

Like "insteadlaugh" I found the book to be very settling, the information provided makes suicide seem not so necessarily imminent.

As for those selling copies for $200 and more, shame on you. It is as if you are trying to exploit a last pound of flesh from those desperately seeking a final answer. A simple $20 price tag with a message urging the buyer to sell it for the same price to the next person would accomplish much more. Hopefully the publisher will soon release another edition and your copy will be as worthless as you are.

I read the guy's website because I can't afford $299 for a book and trust me, it's a helpful thing to read if you're feeling down and thinking about doing yourself in. After too many sites and books that tell you to trust God and everything will be fine, I'm grateful to have found someone who basically says "Okay, here's what will happen if you don't get it right". Makes a bad divorce look like a walk in the park. ;-)

I'm too vain to blow my head off and too scared to risk doing it wrong, so might as well stick around. It was better than therapy and much faster.

This book is not "sick"--it's absolutely necessary, both for those of us who have a serious intent to die and for those of us who are toying with the idea and don't want to cause permanent irreversible damage on the way there. A book like this helps more than it hurts because it prevents people from making attempts that are sure to fail and will cause all kinds of damage along the way. I belong to an internet newsgroup that provides the same kind of service. Talking honestly and openly about suicide SAVES lives, it doesn't *cause* more deaths (as the author said, it's like teenage sex--if you fail to talk about it, it doesn't in any way mean that it's not still going to happen). This book is an invaluable resource for anyone (and that's a lot of us) who has thought about taking that step towards self-inflicted death. my only beef with the author is that he puts depressed people in the "irrational" category. now, if someone is psychotically depressed, hearing voices and the like, that's one thing, but your normal, run-of-the-mill non-psychotic depression is NOT, in my opinion, to be put into that "irrational" category. depression is as serious and as painful as any long-term physical illness, and it ought to be viewed as such. especially because there are cases in which depression can be prolonged for many years and can ultimately be untreatable. this is definitely a book worth owning.

This book needed to be written. There is no better source of information about suicide methods. If you want to know how it's done, what works, and what's likely to leave you a vegetable, this is the place to look.