Phenomenology of Suicide: Unlocking the Suicidal Mind

Description

This book will help the reader to understand the suicidal mind from a phenomenological point of view, shedding light on the feelings of suicidal individuals and also those of clinicians. In accordance with the importance that the phenomenological approach attaches to subjectivity and sense of self as the starting points for knowledge, emphasis is placed on the need for the clinician to focus on the subjective experiences of the at-risk individual, to set aside prior assumptions, judgments, or interpretations, and to identify ways of bridging gaps in communication associated with negative emotions. The vital importance of empathy is stressed, drawing attention to the insights offered by neuroimaging studies and the role of mirror neurons in social cognition. It is widely acknowledged that when a clinician meets a person who wants to die by suicide, the clinician does not fully understand what is going on inside the mind of that individual. This book recognizes that any approach to suicide prevention must promote understanding of suicidal thoughts and feelings. The awareness that it fosters and the innovative perspectives that it presents will appeal to a wide readership. Front Matter ....Pages i-xiv Historical Phenomenology: Understanding Experiences of Suicide and Suicidality Across Time (Ian Marsh)....Pages 1-12 Reflections of a Committed Suicidologist (Maurizio Pompili)....Pages 13-30 A Phenomenological Approach to Suicidal Mental Life (Jann E. Schlimme)....Pages 31-37 Early-Life Adversity and Suicide Risk: The Role of Epigenetics (Gustavo Turecki)....Pages 39-49 Terror and Horror: Feelings, Intersubjectivity and ‘Understanding at the Edges’ in an Interview on a Suicide Attempt (Zoë V. R. Boden)....Pages 51-71 Empathy and Empathic Disconnection in Difficult and Uneasy Situations: Facing the Suicidal Individual (Davide Donelli, Matteo Rizzato)....Pages 73-112 Suicide and Deliberate Self-Harm: When Attachments Fail (Jeremy Holmes)....Pages 113-129 Emotional Dysregulation and Suicide Risk: If You’ll Leave Me, I’ll Kill Myself! (Patrizia Velotti, Giulio Cesare Zavattini)....Pages 131-145 Traumatic Subjective Experiences Invite Suicide (John T. Maltsberger, Mark J. Goldblatt, Elsa Ronningstam, Igor Weinberg, Mark Schechter)....Pages 147-165 Dissociation and Therapeutic Alliance (Lisa Firestone)....Pages 167-186 A Collaborative Approach to Working with the Suicidal Mind (David A. Jobes, Brian M. Piehl, Samantha A. Chalker)....Pages 187-201 The Story of My Suicide (Viktor Staudt)....Pages 203-207 Anodyne Psychotherapy for Suicide: A Psychological View of Suicide (Edwin S. Shneidman)....Pages 209-217