People who suffer from severe headaches or other forms of chronic pain are more prone to commit suicide. Studies in the past have showed that migraine sufferers have increased risks of depression and suicidal behaviour. To examine the association between pain and suicidal tendencies, researchers from America studied 5700 adults. The researchers noted the exposure of the participants to back and neck, headache, other nonarthritic pain and severity of the pain. The participants were also interviewed on suicidal thoughts, plans and attempts. It was found that those with frequent or severe headaches were twice as likely to have either contemplated or attempted suicide. These risks were also elevated among study participants who reported multiple forms of pain. Among those with three or more painful conditions, 14 percent reported of having thought about suicide, while nearly 6 percent reported an actual suicide attempt. The findings could be attributed to the fact that pain is one of those factors that may make someone feel more hopeless and less optimistic about the future and increases the chances that they will think about suicide. The above findings indicate that head pain and pain in multiple areas of the body were particularly linked to suicidal thoughts and behaviour. This provides evidence of a higher-than-average suicide risk among people in chronic pain.
General Hospital Psychiatry
November 2008