Dear Editor,
A recent review article discussed the prevalence of suicide attempts during the COVID-19 pandemic. They found that suicide attempts are attributed to changes in daily routine due to the risk of infection. This highlights the psychological consequence of the community quarantines and changes in lifestyle.[1] The research argues that hopelessness results in suicide ideation and attempts, and hopeful thinking buffers the effect of hopelessness on suicidality.[1,2] Early identification of hopelessness and formation of hopeful thinking is essential to minimize suicidality.[2] Therefore, goal setting, agency formation, and constructing pathway thinking results in lower suicide rates.
Research on hope-building in people with failed suicide attempts focused on self-reminiscence to assign meaningful experiences and develop self-confidence.[3] It does not deal with goal setting and attainment in life. People who are low in hope tend to develop poor agency or the belief in themselves, pathway thinking, or the capacity to think of strategies to reach their goals and experience the absence of goals in life.[4] Hopelessness is the antithesis of hopeful thinking which characterizes the proactive approach to agency, pathway thinking, and goal setting. To alleviate adverse mental health and lessen the risk of suicide, it is essential to promote psychological resources or capacities like hopeful thinking.[5] This is in consideration that people who think and attempt suicide may experience hopelessness or the lack of a clear will and ways of life [Table 1]. Thus, hope intervention can provide the will and ways to live which can decrease possible suicide attempts and ideation.[4]
Table 1.
Hope intervention to manage suicide
| Activity | Objectives | Guide questions and pointers |
|---|---|---|
| Identifying Goals | Aims to guide the identification of important positive goals in their life. | What are your goals? Why are these goals important to you? |
| Agency Building | Develop positive belief in the participant’s capacity to achieve their goals. | Please re-evaluate the importance of the goals. Positive framing with “I am capable of (steps to reach the goal)” |
| Pathway Building | Develop ways or strategies to reach goals by identifying realistic subgoals. | How do you intend to reach your goals? What are the realistic steps you can do to reach your goals? |
Financial support and sponsorship
Nil.
Conflicts of interest
There are no conflicts of interest.
Acknowledgments
The author would like to acknowledge the guidance and inspiration from the HopeLab at De La Salle University, Manila.
References
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