Suicide Season Suicidal Brain

1. The Season!(March – April – May - June)
Figure
Source: d-a-r-e-k. (2009). Where the wild poppies grow. Retrieved from http://www.deviantart.com/art/Where-the-wild-
poppies-grow-130100398

2. Suicide: 2016 Facts and Figures
• An American dies by suicide every 12.3 minutes.
• Americans attempt suicide an estimated 1.1 million times
annually.
• 90% of those who die by suicide had a diagnosable psychiatric
disorder at the time of their death.
• For every woman who dies by suicide, four men die by suicide,
but women are 3x more likely to attempt suicide.
• Nearly 43,000 American die by suicide every year. Suicide is
the 10th leading cause of death in the United States:
• 2nd leading cause of death for ages 44 and under.
• 5th leading cause of death for ages 45-54
• The suicide rate among American Indian/Alaska Native
adolescents and young adults ages 15-24 is 1.5 times the
national average.
• Veterans compromise 22.2% of suicides (afsp.org, 2016).

3. Suicide Season
Spring is when severely
depressed people are able to
be motivated enough to take
action and do something. In
most people, depression
c r e a t e s o ve r w h e l m i n g
feelings of listlessness and
disinterest, so the idea of
putting together a plan to
commit suicide is too
difficult during the winter,
when depression symptoms
may be worse in some
people, he said (Hauser,
2014).
Figure
Source: JoelAmatGuell. (2014). SUICIDE SEASON. Retrieved
from http://www.deviantart.com/art/SUICIDE-
SEASON-136374788

4. Researchers aren't exactly
sure what accounts for the
seasonal spike, but there's
ample evidence that exists.
Studies going back to
the 1880s demonstrate a
spring peak in intentional
self-harm, according to
LiveScience.com. One 1995
study found this trend in 25
countries across the
Northern Hemisphere. The
same applies for the Southern
Hemisphere in other studies
(Hauser, 2014).
Figure
Source:Wishmasteralchemist. (2014). Not letting go.
Retrieved from http://www.deviantart.com/art/Not-
Letting-Go-471389111

5. Grady Dixon, Ph.D., a biometeorologist at
Mississippi State University, told weather.com in
December that he's found two main theories to
explain the suicide-spring connection.
• Spring is when severely depressed people are
able to be motivated enough to take action and do
something. In most people, depression creates
overwhelming feelings of listlessness and
disinterest, so the idea of putting together a plan
to commit suicide is too difficult during the
winter, when depression symptoms may be worse
in some people, he said.
• "Another hypothesis: [Patients] know how they're
affected by seasonal winter depression. They
anticipate they'll feel better when spring and
summer roll around," Dixon said. "When they
don't, that's a catalyst for suicide.” (Hauser, 2017)

6. Cytokine Theory
Figure
Source :mecengineer. (2013). Wild flowers vi. Retrieved from http://www.deviantart.com/art/WILD-FLOWERS-
VI-390980610

7. Allergies
In 2005, Postolache and his collaborators found
that the suicide rate among young women
doubled during peak pollen season, and the rate
among older women went up by more than four-
fold. Last year, researchers in Texas similarly
found that suicide attempts in women rose with
daily tree pollen counts in the Dallas area.
Environmental Research found that increased
pollen in the air raised the risk of suicide in
women in Tokyo—meaning this dark trend might
apply across cultures (Khazan, 2017).

8. Many allergy sufferers
might, when their mucous
membranes are burning
and their sinuses feel like
they’re clogged with Silly
Putty, say they want to die.
And indeed, some of
Postolache’s studies have
fo u n d l i n k s b e t w e e n
i n c r e a s e s i n a l l e r g y
symptoms, aggression, and
mood disturbances. But the
connection doesn’t seem to
be driven by allergy-
induced misery alone.
Instead, it appears to be
caused by an inflammatory
c h a i n r e a c t i o n t h a t
allergens set off in the body
(Khazan, 2017).
Figure
Source:kkart.(2009).Sunflowersoftness.Retrievedfromhttp://www.deviantart.com/art/
Sunflower-Softness-135152688

9. Cytokines
When a speck of pollen from the air comes into
contact with immune cells in the nose, the cells
release cytokines—molecules that cells use to
communicate messages to one another.
Postolache and others believe cytokines might
drift through the nose to enter the brain. There,
the cytokines might disrupt the brain’s delicate
chemical soup, shifting the balance from feel-
good chemicals to toxic ones that may trigger
anxiety and impulsive behavior. Besides the
nose, cytokines might also influence the brain by
traveling through nerves, or by prompting
immune cells to mistakenly attack healthy brain
cells (Khazan, 2017).

10. These cytokines,
then, may play a
role in the angst
and impulsiveness
that drives people
to take their lives.
Indeed, Postolache
and others found
elevated cytokine
levels in the brains
of suicide victims
(Khazan, 2017).
Figure
Source:Sash-kash.(2007).Suicide….Retrievedfromhttp://www.deviantart.com/art/
Suicide-67730543

11. The
Suicidal
Brain
Figure
Source:MachiavelliCro.(2013).Braindead.Retrievedfromhttp://www.deviantart.com/
art/Braindead-407424875

12. Cytokine targets neurotransmitters and neurocircuits.

13. Once in the brain, the inflammatory response can affect metabolic and molecular pathways
influencing neurotransmitter systems that can ultimately affect neurocircuits that regulate
behaviour, especially behaviours relevant to decreased motivation (anhedonia), avoidance and alarm
(anxiety), which characterize several neuropsychiatric disorders including depression. On a
molecular level, pro-inflammatory cytokines including type I and II interferons (IFNs), interleukin-1Ữ
(IL-1Ữ) and tumour necrosis factor (TNF) can reduce the availability of monoamines — serotonin (5-
HT), dopamine (DA) and noradrenaline (NE) — by increasing the expression and function of the
presynaptic reuptake pumps (transporters) for 5-HT, DA and NE through activation of mitogen-
activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways and by reducing monoamine synthesis through
decreasing enzymatic co-factors such as tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4), which is highly sensitive to
cytokine-induced oxidative stress and is involved in the production of nitric oxide (NO) by NO
synthase (NOS). Many cytokines, including IFNữ, IL-1Ữ and TNF, can also decrease relevant
monoamine precursors by activating the enzyme indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO), which breaks
down tryptophan, the primary precursor for serotonin, into kynurenine. Activated microglia can
convert kynurenine into quinolinic acid (QUIN), which binds to the N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor
(NMDAR), a glutamate (Glu) receptor, and together with cytokine-induced reduction in astrocytic Glu
reuptake and stimulation of astrocyte Glu release, in part by induction of reactive oxygen species
(ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS), can lead to excessive Glu, an excitatory amino acid
neurotransmitter. Excessive Glu, especially when binding to extrasynaptic NMDARs, can in turn lead
to decreased brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and excitotoxicity. Inflammation effects on
growth factors such as BDNF in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus can also affect fundamental
aspects of neuronal integrity including neurogenesis, long-term potentiation and dendritic sprouting,
ultimately affecting learning and memory. Cytokine effects on neurotransmitter systems, especially
DA, can inhibit several aspects of reward motivation and anhedonia in corticostriatal circuits
involving the basal ganglia, ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) and subgenual and dorsal
anterior cingulate cortex (sgACC and dACC, respectively), while also activating circuits regulating
anxiety, arousal, alarm and fear including the amygdala, hippocampus, dACC and insula. BH2,
dihydrobiopterin; DAT, dopamine transporter; EAAT2, excitatory amino acid transporter 2; NET,
noradrenaline transporter; NF-₫B, nuclear factor-₫B; SERT, serotonin transporter; TH, tyrosine
hydroxylase; TPH, tryptophan hydroxylase. Copyrighted 2015. Advanstar. 120580:1115BN. (Miller &
Raison, 2016).

14. Monoamine Metabolism
Low levels of:
• Serotonin (5-HT)
• Dopamine (DA)
• Noradrenaline
(NE) (Miller &
Raison, 2016)
=
DEPRESSION

15. Glutamate Metabolism
Excess brain glutamate is believed to cause
numerous symptoms, including:
• Hyperalgesia (pain amplification)
• Anxiety
• Restlessness
• ADHD-like symptoms, such as inability to focus
A glutamate deficiency in the brain is believed to cause
symptoms including:
Insomnia
• Concentration problems
• Mental exhaustion
• Low energy (Dellwo, 2017)
Figure
Source: MissPoe. (2014). Anxiety. Retrieved from http://www.deviantart.com/art/Anxiety-437857066

16. Depression and Suicide Risk
Depression is a major risk factor for
suicide. The deep despair and
hopelessness that goes along with
depression can make suicide feel like
the only way to escape the pain. If you
have a loved one with depression,
take any suicidal talk or behavior
seriously and learn to recognize the
warning signs… (Smith, Saisan &
Segal, 2015)

17. Warning signs of suicide include:
• Talking about killing or harming one’s self
• Expressing strong feelings of hopelessness or being
trapped
• An unusual preoccupation with death or dying
• Acting recklessly, as if they have a death wish (e.g.
speeding through red lights)
• Calling or visiting people to say goodbye
• Getting affairs in order (giving away prized
possessions, tying up loose ends)
• Saying things like “Everyone would be better off
without me” or “I want out”
• A sudden switch from being extremely depressed to
acting calm and happy (Smith, Saisan & Segal,
2015)

18. Risk factors that make you more
vulnerable to depression include:
• Loneliness and isolation
• Lack of social support
• Recent stressful life experiences
• Family history of depression
• Marital or relationship problems
• Financial strain
• Early childhood trauma or abuse
• Alcohol or drug abuse
• Unemployment or underemployment
• Health problems or chronic pain (Smith,
Saisan & Segal, 2015)

19. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline!
1-800-273-TALK!
www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org

20. References
• afsp.org. (2016). American foundation for suicide prevention.
Retrieved from http://afsp.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/2016-
National-Facts-Figures.pdf
• Dellwo, A. (2017). GABA & Glutamate in fibromyalgia & chronic
fatigue syndrome: What jobs they do, what problems they can cause.
Retrieved from https://www.verywell.com/gaba-glutamate-
fibromyalgia-chronic-fatigue-716010
• Kazan, O. (2017). The troubling link between springtime allergies and
suicide: Pollen can cause inflammation that leads to impulsive, fatal
behavior, researchers say. Retrieved from https://
www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2017/04/the-troubling-link-
between-allergies-and-suicide/523608/
• Miller, A. & Raison, C. L. (2016). Cytokine targets in the brain:
neurotransmitters and neurocircuits. From The role of inflammation
in depression: from evolutionary imperative to modern treatment
target. Retrieved from http://www.nature.com/nri/journal/v16/n1/
fig_tab/nri.2015.5_F3.html
• Smith, M., Saisan, J., & Segal, J. (2015). Depression symptoms and
warning signs. Retrieved from http://www.helpguide.org/articles/
depression/depression-signs-and-symptoms.htm