Tara Jabeen*, 15, resident of Khana Pul, after having a small scuffle with her elder brother over a domestic issue gulped down an entire bottle of nail polish remover and was taken to the hospital in a critical condition.
According to a police official deputed in the emergency ward of Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims); Samina Naz, a senior nurse in the emergency ward of Holy Family Hospital Rawalpindi; and Dr Mobeenul Haq, senior registrar and consultant at the Department of Psychiatry Benazir Bhutto Hospital (BBH) Rawalpindi, every day the emergency department of the hospital receives a case of suicide attempt by a youth, mostly young girls.
Experts said that minor domestic disputes like parental objections to use of cellphones, personality clashes among peers, outings with friends without parents’ permission, break-up in romantic relationships, unemployment, forced/late marriages, sibling rivalry, parents’ neglect, poor performance in exams, parents’ separation and psychological disorders like depression, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and schizophrenia were among the causes that provoked young people to take this drastic step.
An expert said that terrorist activities and their projection on television were also spreading despair among the youth.
A police official at Pims said the parents or attendants who accompanied such patients tried to cover up the causes of the attempt and removed the patients from the hospital as soon as they were out of danger.
“The major reason for attempting suicide by girls and young women was to draw attention and to make their voice heard,” said Rabia Manzoor, a youth clinical physiologist at the Youth Help Line (YHL), a resource centre of Rozan, an NGO working on issues of emotional and sexual health of young people.
YHL is a toll free telephone counselling service where youth across the country can call and share their problems with clinical psychologists.
Rabia said an analysis of the calls received on YHL from January to July 2010 revealed that the percentage of women among suicidal attempts was higher than men. A total number of 15 calls connected with suicidal attempts were attended during the period, out of which 12 were from young girls aged 19-24 and three were from young men.
However there has been a change in the trend in the last one year. “Previously, the girls used to call and share their problems and hide their intention of attempting suicide, but now they call at the moment they are about to attempt suicide,” the psychologist said.
Sharing a case history she said a few months back a girl from Islamabad called and said, “I am holding a bottle of acid in my hand and I’m going to drink it. I am doing it because my brother and his wife treat me worse than a maid and want me to marry [a much older man].”
Rabia said that “psycho-education” can help treat suicidal tendencies among youngsters but unfortunately very few people are aware of this method of treatment.
It is a method of counselling which helps people understand the root cause of their problems and helps them take decisions accordingly. She said it can be done by anyone, a mother, elder brother, sister or even a friend.
“Psycho-education should be available in every school but in Pakistan only few elite schools offer it,” she added.
Raheela Imtiaz*, 20, a resident of Dhoke Kala Khan in Rawalpindi attempted suicide by drinking spirit after being scolded by her elder sisters for losing her wedding picture.
Saba Shahid*, 21, a resident of G-10/3 attempted suicide by taking lots of sleeping pills after being slandered by her parents as she was caught talking on phone with her fiancé.
Dr Haq of BBH Rawalpindi said that majority of attempted suicide cases come from suburbs of Rawalpindi. Once the hospital received a case in which a woman attempted suicide by slashing her throat on a minor domestic issue. Some took rat poison or slit their wrists.
He said that such patients need to be treated using medicines, however, counselling is a far more effective method
of treatment.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 27th, 2010.
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