[styrophone]

I don't think suicide is inherently a much worse cause of death than many others, but it is often associated with a mental illness, outside of which the sufferer would not choose to die. Althoigh the illness manifests as free will, it is an illness nonetheless that might be treated. I don't mean to say that it is impossible for a person of sound mind to choose not to live any longer. However, given how often treatment results in improved will to live and improved quality of life, I think it would be irresponsible to assume a healthy mind without challenge and go to euthanasia as a first resort standard of care. We certainly wouldn't do that for any other presentation of symptoms.

[somedudethere]

I'm not saying that suicide isn't associated with mental health, but when I read this I got a vague feeling of a tautology.

If we define the components of mental illness as being suicidal, obviously that would lead you to classify all suicidals as mentally ill.

For a long time being homosexual was seen as a mental illness and those (probably most) administering treatments saw themselves as helping them and the patient would have a higher quality of life after they were cured. The doctors thought the patient was harming themselves and their family by participating in lewd activities.

Not trying to say one thing or the other about suicide. I just think it is interesting what we consider a mental illness and why and why its dangerous to go to the "mental illness" (I hate this phrasing) reasoning right away.

[s3arch]

Some people who are suicidal are not mentally ill. Sometimes they lose perspective of their life, and this may continue for many months/years. They feel that the pain they are in now, is much worse than death. They run out of answers for "why they must live".

[ionised]

Yeah, ritual suicide for example was not carried out by depressed people.

It was a cultural phenomenon, not mental illness.