numbspirit
living failure
- Jan 3, 2024
- 42
I have seen many threads here where people have discussed the method of jumping off a building. This method has great difficulties, which I would like to discuss in more detail. At the end, I'll link to a few methods you could consider instead. Also, this text refers to jumping from buildings onto hard surfaces. Jumping from bridges into rivers etc. is not meant here.
If anyone has important information or contributions, please feel free to add them.
If anyone has important information or contributions, please feel free to add them.
1. Introduction
Two things first: I don't want to lecture anyone, with this thread I just want to draw attention to a few things that should be considered in connection with this method. These have already been discussed here, but I think this deserves its own thread as it is a very complex and extensive topic.
The other thing is: I am in no way trying to blame anyone. We are all here for reasons. Most people on this forum, myself included, want to/will take their own lives because they see no other way out. It's sad that life has brought us here, however, we all deserve a death that meets our needs and one should know every facet of the method one chooses.
From the threads I've read here on this topic, you can tell that jumping is considered by many to be without alternative. After all, this method is supposedly easier to access, and for some people there seems to be no other option. Another factor is probably the high mortality rate of this method. I will comment on both later on.
2. Suicide by jumping
Jumping from a great height is one of the most common methods of taking one's own life. While in Western countries such as the USA, few choose this route, as most high-rise buildings are office buildings or other facilities with limited access, jumping is more common in Asia. In Hong Kong, for example, 52% of all suicides choose this method. The reason: in this jungle of skyscrapers, it is much easier to gain access to roofs or high floors. A clear indication that accessibility and effort play a significant role in the decision.
2.1 Risks
Although jumping from a great height is considered one of the safest methods of all, there are still risks for the suicidal person, even though they occur rarely and only with bad luck. Overall, the mortality rate for jumping (including attempts from too low a height) is 55%. To be fair, it has to be said that, above a certain height, it is a very safe method. Very few people survive jumps from a height of ten stories, although there are still exceptions: in 2010, 22-year-old Thomas Magill survived a jump from a height of 400 feet. Alcides Moreno, a window cleaner, survived a fall from a height of almost 500 feet in 2007. There is therefore a very real risk of surviving even such a jump. Posture plays a decisive role here - a 28-year-old free climber survived a fall from 300 feet because she adopted a posture that saved her life, albeit with serious injuries. Conversely, of course, this means that an appropriate posture can nullify a suicide attempt - albeit with the necessary luck/pitch. Landing head first is fatal from a certain height in almost every case, but it is difficult to align the body accordingly in the air, even if you jump head first.
2.2 Effects on witnesses and survivors
The greatest risk, however, the greatest danger posed by this method, does not affect the suicide victim himself, but the people around him. The sight of a dead person, especially in a condition that is to be expected after a fall from a great height, can trigger reactions in witnesses that they are unable to cope with. Witnessing a public suicide is very distressing and can trigger severe psychological problems such as PTSD and depression, from which some are unable to fully recover, leaving their lives shattered.
2.3 Dangers for bystanders
In the worst cases, suicides take uninvolved people who were in the wrong place at the wrong time to their deaths.
In 2016, a 40-year-old South Korean man died in Gwangju in front of his pregnant wife and 6-year-old son when a 26-year-old suicide jumper landed on top of him.
In 2017, a 68-year-old died in Seoul when a 56-year-old landed on top of him.
Also in 2017, a 22-year-old in Virginia who wanted to dedicate her life to caring for sick people died when a 12-year-old boy landed on top of her car.
In 2021, an uninvolved 61-year-old man died in New York when a suicidal man jumped on him.
Also in 2021, an innocent 29-year-old woman died in San Diego when she was swept to her death by a jumper.
Also in 2021, in Voronezh, Russia, a five-month-old child who had his life ahead of him died in front of his mother when a suicide jumper jumped from the 17th floor and landed on the child.
These are just a few examples. It is all too common for people who jump from great heights to seriously injure or kill other people. Even if you take care to catch a clear spot, you can never rule out the possibility that a person will be there at the time of impact.
2.4 Minimizing risk
If you absolutely want to jump at all costs, there are ways to at least minimize the risk. In a thread that I can't find right now, a user had a plan to climb up a crane at night on a construction site and alert the rescue services just before jumping so as not to endanger civilians or construction workers. I think that's very commendable, because it shows empathy and that he/she doesn't want to involve anyone in his/her own death. Overall, there are not too many ways to jump from great heights without endangering other people. You can look out for cliffs that are less frequented, for example. Unfortunately, however, there are simply not that many places that are high enough for others not to observe, let alone be injured or die. In nature, such places are extremely rare, and man-made opportunities almost always carry the risk of involving other people.
Whether it's a crane, a cliff or a high bridge away from civilization, the body will always be in a condition that no one, not even trained rescuers, would want to be exposed to. And what if you are discovered by an uninvolved person before the rescue services arrive?
2.5 Myths
It is said that you will faint after jumping. I'm sorry to have to say this, but I couldn't find any studies to suggest this, and it seems very unlikely. Given that in most situations you only fall for a few seconds, there simply isn't enough time. Furthermore, scientifically speaking, there is not a single reason to faint in a free fall. The only thing that might happen is that you go into a state of shock due to the situation you are in, in which you no longer perceive your surroundings properly. However, this is not set in stone either, and it is very likely that you will be fully aware of everything until you hit the ground. Unfortunately, this is nothing more than a myth for which there is no scientific basis.
3. Alternative methods
Let's stick with the fact that for many people jumping seems to be the only option, for example for financial or procurement reasons. Let us now consider the following: 1. the person does not have enough money to buy expensive equipment or chemicals. 2. the person can move freely (otherwise they would not be able to get to places where they can jump). Point 1 in particular limits the choice of method considerably, but there are indeed methods that can be used here. Here are three well-known methods that cost little to no money.
a) Hanging
Hanging is a very simple method that is almost always lethal if carried out correctly. Partial is preferable to full suspension, as the latter involves the risk of an unpleasant death by asphyxiation, whereas with partial, if carried out correctly, you will pass out after a few seconds. In the best case scenario, a non-elastic rope is required to perform the move, which generally costs very little. Many suicides by hanging with scarves and the like are known from poorer countries. This is not recommended, and rightly so.
Here is a guide for partial suspension:
How to hang yourself
I just thought this information is better off here now, because the original source has been taken down. If this violates any rules or if the author doesn't want this information to be reproduced on other sites, the admins or mods are free to delete my thread. I hope you don't mind, this is very...
sanctioned-suicide.net
b) CO poisoning
Carbon monoxide poisoning is a very effective type of suicide that is easy to carry out. Above all, it is very painless; according to the sources, you simply fall asleep. All you need is charcoal and a room where you can carry out the method undisturbed. Due to its simplicity and peaceful nature, this was the method I wanted to use for a long time.
Here is a guide to the Fliesenbourg method:
Charcoal method advice
Hi, I somehow came across this site after some furious google searching over the weekend. After trying and failing other methods over the past month I came across back to the idea of carbon monoxide and decided to dig further into charcoal burning, of which there are plenty discussions on this...
sanctioned-suicide.net
c) Shallow-Water Blackout
This is also a simple method that can be implemented without any expense. All you need is water, whether in a river, stream or bathtub.
Here is a guide to the Shallow-water blackout:
Shallow water blackout
This is a very easy, painless, free method, that can very easily pass as accidental. Directions: https://imgur.com/a/cNul4r7 I haven’t seen it mentioned before, but they sure like to warn us about it, basically giving us instructions by doing the opposite of their points Instructions...
sanctioned-suicide.net
4. Conclusion
Of course, being pro-choice also involves the preferred method, so you have to respect it if someone wants to jump off a skyscraper. However, it shows that there are definitely other cheap and easy methods. Taking your own life is no walk in the park, you always have to put in a little effort. The only question is, how do you want to go?If you care little bit about others, don't want to traumatize, hurt or even kill others, then please don't jump off a building. It's best for everyone involved.
Man survives after 400ft jump by landing on car
A man who jumped more than 400ft after leaping off a New York apartment block survived after crashing feet first into a parked car.
www.telegraph.co.uk
The window cleaner who fell from a skyscraper and lived
The story of window cleaner Alcides Moreno who survived a 47-storey fall from a New York skyscraper
www.bbc.com
Adolescent witnesses to a peer suicide - PubMed
In combination with the extant literature, this study demonstrates that adolescents who witness a traumatic suicidal death are at risk for the development of psychopathology, specifically, anxiety disorders and PTSD.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
When You've Witnessed the Aftermath of a Suicide
"What do we do when we’ve been witness to the aftermath of a suicide?"
How a Public Suicide Harms the People Who See It
One evening last March, Nancy Bacon saw a stranger die. She had just touched down in Toronto and set off for a business meeting, chatting on her phone as she navigated the rush-hour traffic of …
www.psychologicalscience.org
New resource available to support people who witness a suicide - Transformation Partners in Health and Care
Thrive LDN, Support after Suicide Partnership (SASP) and Grassroots have develoed First Hand, a resource for anyone affected by witnessing a suicide.
www.transformationpartners.nhs.uk
Survival following a vertical free fall from 300 feet: The crucial role of body position to impact surface
We report the case of a 28-year old rock climber who survived an "unsurvivable" injury consisting of a vertical free fall from 300 feet onto a solid rock surface. The trauma mechanism and injury kinetics are analyzed, with a particular focus on the relevance ...
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
People killed by jumpers:
Woman Killed After 12-Year-Old Boy Jumps Off I-66 Overpass, Lands on Her SUV
A 12-year-old boy plunged from an overpass in Virginia in an apparent suicide attempt on Saturday, killing a woman who was driving her SUV on the interstate below, police say.
www.nbcwashington.com
S. Korea 'suicide' jumper kills man on landing
Seoul (AFP) - A South Korean man was killed after a woman who apparently committed suicide by jumping from an apartment block landed on him, reports said.
Man killed by suicide jumper
Two men died Tuesday in Buk-gu, Gwangju, after one threw himself out a window to kill himself and landed on top of the other. Police said a 26-year-old university student, whose identity has been withheld, left a suicide note and jumped from the 12th floor of his apartment complex at around 10...
www.koreaherald.com
Shocking scene as man jumps to his death, hits another man below
“It’s just a tragic set of circumstances.”
thehill.com
Woman Walking on Street Killed When Man Jumps From Downtown San Diego Building: Police
An innocent bystander was killed in downtown San Diego Sunday night when a suicidal man jumped off a building and hit her as she walked on the sidewalk beneath the building, police confirmed.
www.nbcsandiego.com
Baby crushed to death when man jumps from 17th floor and lands on his pram
A FIVE-MONTH-OLD baby has died in Russia after a man reportedly jumped from the 17th floor of a building and landed on its stroller. The tragedy, which was captured on CCTV, happened on Thurs…
www.thesun.co.uk
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