Suffocation Suffocation, as a classification of suicide method, includes
strangulation and
hanging. Suicide by suffocation involves restricting breathing or the amount of oxygen taken in, causing
asphyxia and eventually
hypoxia. It is not possible to die simply by holding the breath, since a
reflex causes the
respiratory muscles to contract, forcing an in-breath, and the re-establishment of a normal breathing rhythm. Therefore, inhaling an
inert gas such as
helium or
nitrogen, or a toxic gas such as
carbon monoxide, is used to bring about
unconsciousness. Certain devices such as
exit bags are designed to be used with this method, and provide a way for the carbon dioxide to passively escape, which prevents the panic, sense of suffocation and struggling before
unconsciousness, known as the
hypercapnic alarm response caused by the presence of high
carbon dioxide concentrations in the blood. , organizations supporting a
right to die promoted death by helium inhalation, although most cases using this method in the US were people with psychiatric conditions.
Hanging by
Giotto, depicting suicide by
hanging Hanging is a common method of suicide. Hanging is the prevalent means of suicide in impoverished
pre-industrial societies, and is more common in
rural areas than in
urban areas. Hanging was the most common method in
traditional Chinese culture, In the Chinese culture, suicide by hanging was used as an act of revenge by women and of defiance by powerless officials, who used it as a "final, but unequivocal, way of standing still against and above oppressive authorities".
Drowning girl contemplating drowning herself Suicide by drowning is the act of deliberately submerging oneself in water or other liquid to prevent
breathing. It accounts for less than 2% of all suicides in the United States. People with
dementia and
schizophrenia have a higher risk of dying by drowning. Of those who attempt suicide by drowning in the US, about half die. About 2% to 3% of suicides by drowning involve
driving a vehicle into a body of water.
Poisoning Suicide by poisoning, also called
self-poisoning, is usually classed as a
drug overdose when drugs such as painkillers or recreational drugs are used. The use of
pesticides to self-poison is the most common method used in some countries. , worldwide, around 30% of suicides were from
pesticide poisonings. It was the leading suicide method in
developing countries, with about half of suicide deaths in India involving poisoning, and most of those involving pesticides. Method restriction is an effective way to reduce suicide by pesticide poisoning. In the UK (England and Wales) until 2013, a
drug overdose was the most common suicide method in women. In 2019 the percentage was 16% in males. Self-poisoning accounts for the highest number of non-fatal suicide attempts. In the United States about 60% of suicide attempts and 14% of suicide deaths involve drug overdoses. A particular type of poisoning involves the inhalation of high levels of
carbon monoxide (CO). Death usually occurs through
hypoxia. A nonfatal attempt can result in memory loss and other symptoms.
Firearm (The Suicide'') by
Édouard Manet, depicting suicide by firearm In the United States, suicide by firearm is the most lethal method of suicide, resulting in a fatality 90% of the time, Worldwide, firearm prevalence in suicides varies widely, depending on the acceptance and availability of firearms in a culture. The use of firearms in suicides ranges from less than 10% in Australia, to 50.5% in the U.S., where it is the most common method of suicide. Reducing access to guns at a population level decreases the risk of suicide by firearms. Fewer people die from suicide overall in places with stricter laws regulating the use, purchase, and trading of firearms.
Jumping Jumping is the most common method of suicide in
Hong Kong, accounting for 52.1% of all reported suicide cases in 2006 and similar rates for the years before that. The Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention of the
University of Hong Kong believes that it may be due to the abundance of easily accessible
high-rise buildings in Hong Kong. In the United States, jumping is among the least common methods of suicide (less than 2% of all reported suicides in 2005). Jumping deaths are often impulsive, and one study of the Golden Gate Bridge demonstrated that more than 90% of people interrupted in a suicide attempt ultimately died by natural or accidental causes, with only 6% dying in a subsequent suicide attempt. Similarly, in New Zealand, secure fencing at the
Grafton Bridge substantially reduced the rate of suicides. Chest-high barriers are more effective than waist-high barriers because they require more time and effort to climb over. Other method-specific prevention actions include making staff members visible in high-risk areas, using
closed-circuit television cameras to identify people in inappropriate places or behaving abnormally (e.g., lingering in a place that people normally spend little time in), and installing awnings and soft-looking landscaping, which deters suicide attempts by making the place look ineffective. For every suicide by wrist cutting, there are many more nonfatal attempts, so that the number of actual deaths using this method is very low. Wounds from suicide attempts involve the non-dominant hand, with damage often done to the
median nerve,
ulnar nerve,
radial artery,
palmaris longus muscle, and
flexor carpi radialis muscle.
Starvation and dehydration A classification has been made of
Voluntarily Stopping Eating and Drinking (VSED) which is often resorted to by those with a terminal illness. It has been used by
assisted dying activists, such as
Wendy Mitchell, as a means of death in places where assisted suicide is not available.
Starvation Fasting to death has been used by
Hindu,
Buddhist, and
Jain ascetics and householders, as a ritual method of suicide known as "
prayopavesa" in
Hinduism,
Vatakkiruttal in
Tamil tradition, "
sokushinbutsu" historically in
Buddhism, and as "
sallekhana" in
Jainism.
Cathars also fasted to death after receiving the
consolamentum sacrament, in order to die while in a morally perfect state. The method is also used in passive
senicide and associated with the political protest of the
hunger strike such as the
1981 Irish hunger strike in which ten prisoners died.
Dehydration Death from dehydration can take from several days to a few weeks. This means that unlike many other suicide methods, it cannot be accomplished impulsively. Those who die by terminal dehydration typically lapse into unconsciousness before death, and may also experience
delirium and deranged
serum sodium.
Terminal dehydration has been described as having substantial advantages over physician-assisted suicide with respect to
self-determination, access, professional integrity, and social implications. Specifically, a patient has a right to refuse treatment and it would be a personal assault for someone to force water on a patient, but such is not the case if a doctor merely refuses to provide lethal medication. But it also has distinctive drawbacks as a humane means of voluntary death. One survey of hospice nurses found that nearly twice as many had cared for patients who chose voluntary refusal of food and fluids to hasten death as had cared for patients who chose physician-assisted suicide. They also rated fasting and dehydration as causing less suffering and pain and being more peaceful than physician-assisted suicide. Other sources note very painful side effects of dehydration, including seizures, skin cracking and bleeding, blindness, nausea, vomiting, cramping and severe headaches.
Collision with or of a vehicle Another suicide method is to lie down, or throw oneself, in the path of a fast-moving vehicle, either on the road or onto railway tracks. Nonfatal attempts may result in profound injuries, such as
multiple bone fractures,
amputations,
concussion and severe
mental and
physical handicapping.
Road Some people use intentional car crashes as a suicide method. This especially applies to single-occupant, single-vehicle wrecks, Even single-vehicle collisions may harm other road users; for example, a driver who brakes abruptly or swerves to avoid a suicidal person may collide with something else on the road, resulting in harm to the driver or others. Both the innocent driver and bystanders may be
traumatized by the experience, even if everyone survives. Being victimized by a suicidal
pedestrian is recognized as an
occupational hazard for professional drivers, especially if they operate heavy vehicles. The pilot was usually flying alone at the time, and was using alcohol or drugs about half the time. In the rare case of a pilot engaging in murder–suicide, the number of innocent people is sometimes very high. On 24 March 2015, a Germanwings co-pilot deliberately crashed
Germanwings Flight 9525 into the
French Alps to kill himself, killing 149 people with him. Suicide by pilot has also been proposed as a potential cause for the disappearance and following destruction of
Malaysian Airlines Flight 370 in 2014, with supporting evidence being found in a
flight simulator application used by the flight's pilot.
Disease There have been documented cases of
gay men deliberately trying to contract a disease such as
HIV/AIDS as a means of suicide.
Electrocution Suicide by electrocution involves using a lethal
electric shock, and is a rarely used method. This causes arrhythmias of the heart, meaning that the heart does not contract in synchrony between the different chambers, essentially causing elimination of blood flow. Furthermore, depending on the
current, burns may also occur.
Fire Self-immolation is suicide usually by
fire. This method of suicide is rare due to it being long and painful. If the attempt is intervened, severe burns and scar tissue will prevail with subsequent emotional impact. It has been used as a protest tactic, by
Thích Quảng Đức in 1963 to protest the
South Vietnam's anti-Buddhist policies; by
Malachi Ritscher in 2006 to protest the
United States' involvement in the
Iraq War; by
Mohamed Bouazizi in 2011 in
Tunisia which gave rise to the
Tunisian Revolution; by
Aaron Bushnell in 2024 to protest the United States' support for Israel in the Israel–Hamas war; and historically as a ritual known as
sati where a
Hindu widow would immolate herself in her husband's
funeral pyre.
Hypothermia Hypothermia is a rare method of suicide. Between 1991 and 2014 in the United States, there were eight cases in the scientific literature, and they usually involved some other factor like drugs.
Assisted suicide Indirect Indirect suicide is the act of setting out on an obviously fatal course without directly carrying out the act upon oneself. Indirect suicide is differentiated from legally defined suicide by the fact that the person does not directly cause the action meant to kill them, but rather expects and allows the action to happen to them. Examples of indirect suicide include a soldier enlisting in the
army with the intention and expectation of being killed in combat, or provoking an armed law enforcement officer into using lethal force against them. The latter is generally called "
suicide by cop". Evidence exists for suicide by
capital crime in
colonial Australia. Convicts seeking to escape their brutal treatment would murder another individual. This was felt necessary due to a religious taboo against direct suicide. A person
committing suicide was believed to be destined for
hell, whereas a person committing murder could be
absolved of their sins before execution. In its most extreme form, groups of prisoners on the extremely brutal penal colony of
Norfolk Island would form suicide lotteries. Prisoners would
draw straws with one prisoner murdering another. The remaining participants would witness the crime, and would be sent away to
Sydney, as capital trials could not be held on Norfolk Island, thus earning a break from the Island. There is uncertainty as to the extent of suicide lotteries. While surviving contemporary accounts claim that the practice was common, such claims are probably exaggerated.
Rituals Ritual suicide is performed in a specifically prescribed way, often as part of a cultural or religious practice.
Suicide by hanging was traditionally practiced in
China and the
Sinosphere as a means of ensuring that one's
ghost would be able to haunt and torment the powerful but unjust.
Self-immolation was practiced similarly in
India and spread with
Dharmic religions. Some forms of suicide involve or are understood as
martyrdom and are undertaken ritualistically.
Sallekhana is the practice of ritualized starvation following
Jain practices.
Romans who considered themselves dishonored would "fall on their sword", ritualistically transfixing themselves on their
swords; the similar
medieval Japanese practice became known as
seppuku or
harakiri for samurai. Female ritual suicide (incorrectly referred to in some English sources as
jigai) was carried out in Japan by wives of samurai who had committed seppuku or otherwise brought dishonour. ==See also==