Why You Should Probably Ignore the ‘Holiday Suicide’ Myth

It’s quite surprising or rather shocking to see why the world has linked two totally irrelevant occurrences. Holidays are something that brings joy, happiness, and excitement. On the contrary, suicide is death due to sorrow, gloominess, and the inability to face life. When on earth did this irony become so popular? Well, it was apparently in the year 2017-18 when the holiday suicide myth started doing rounds. It was also when approximately 47,000 suicides were reported in the United States. This made the press irrationally depict that the death rate due to suicides was on the rise during the holiday season. 

Why Is Holiday Suicide a Myth?

1. The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention has clearly stated that Holiday suicide is a complete myth and makes no sense. In fact, research shows that the suicidal rate increases in warmer seasons such as spring rather than winter. Though there are cases of suicides in winter, the number is relatively high during spring, according to reports.
2. The reason for suicide is more because of a person’s internal thoughts and struggles rather than external climatic conditions. There are a lot of other factors such as mental illness, pressure from the outside world, depression, etc that may lead to the same. 
3. Moreover, a new study reveals that a person who decides to commit suicide requires more energy and strength to take this hard decision. Deciding to kill oneself is the toughest choice a person can make and apparently, our body receives more energy in the summer rather than in the winter. 
4. It all started with a 1946 movie ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’. Its plot revolves around the protagonist choosing to end his life during Christmas and later how the turn of events makes him change his mind. 
5. Newspaper stories and articles are one of the main reasons these myths started spreading like a forest fire. People consider anything and everything on the print to be legit but is actually not. 

How the Holiday Suicide Myth Affects Mental Stability

Discussing or justifying the theory of holiday suicide only feeds in suicidal thoughts to a person who is already depressed. He/ she simply infers that are several other people around them who have chosen this extreme idea to end the pain. So, if any of your friends or acquaintances are depressed or witnessed glorifying the myth, make it a point to prove them wrong with the help of facts and also support them if they need are looking for help (Learn how to help a friend with mental illness).