SUICIDE BY SNIPER: A POPULAR CHOICE AMONG NIGERIANS - (PART THREE)

Depression is not a pleasant experience. “This is what most people don't understand when they unleash unfair judgements on suicide victims. It's all centred on the concept of human frailty. As human beings, we are both strong and weak; in fact very weak. The only thing that differentiates us is how much we are able to withhold and hide that weakness.”

During the face of depression campaign on social media in 2017, a young suicide survivor, in her early twenties, posted about her encounter with depression.

She wrote: “Depression is cruel and unforgiving; it has no look. Sometimes, the day I look the least depressed, I'm suffering the hardest. There's a stigma of having to look fragile, broken, makeup running, bottle of vodka and a suicide note in your hand to be worthy of help or attention for your pain.

“Depression is cowering away in bed; depression is also faking a smile in public. Depression is sometimes being exhausted getting out of bed; depression is also excessive burst of energy to try and distract yourself. Depression is crying, self-loathing and dread; depression is also laughing and trying to fit in. Depression is dark, black and cold; depression is also leading a ‘normal’ life and appearing ‘functioning’. Depression is agony; depression is also a friend, a comfort. Don't judge; you never know what someone is going through behind a smile or a laugh.”

Controlling the Availability of Sniper

Originally invented for agricultural use, Sniper's domestication into the home as insect and rodent killer poses a serious threat to public health. Even on the farms, quite a lot of farmers have died due to mishandling of the pesticide. In fact, recently, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) banned Sniper from use on beans, due to the several health implications it has caused.

Mental health practitioners are worried that the pesticide is readily available almost everywhere in Nigeria: at local stores, fancy supermarkets, even on hawkers. There is little or no restriction as to how it is being accessed. Sadly, “there is no way we can effectively prevent suicide without controlling the availability of its means.

Though the fact that Sniper has gotten into the wrong hands may not suffice to outright placing of a ban on the pesticide, due to the economic realities of the country, nevertheless, its availability must be controlled by the relevant authorities, if truly they are committed to curbing the suicide in the country.

“We also need to educate people on how to stock and use Sniper, because even its presence in the house is tempting enough to make one commit suicide without a second thought.

CONCLUSION

Bad parenting is one of the major factors responsible for the high rate of suicide, especially in Nigeria.

“The reason more people, particularly young ones, are attempting suicide nowadays is as a result of the over-regulation and lack of integration plaguing most Nigerian households, oftentimes, children who grow up in such homes feel despised, sometimes isolated or lonely, and in the long run, they end up killing themselves, just like we saw in Omolola Aisha's case.”

Sadly, In the current generation of young people, low resilience is a hallmark, this is not unconnected to some environmental factors, including defunct parenting and excessive availability of information, due to the advent of the internet.

“If a kid, for instance, gets embarrassed, say at school, the news spreads like wildfire on social media, and he/she gets immersed in shame and frustration which they feel they can’t deal with, and may end up attempting suicide — which was not the case in the past,”, 

In addition to this, the lost culture of community and the prevalence of the every-man-to-himself philosophy has reduced the level of resilience in young people of nowadays, thereby drastically increasing the rate of suicide.

 “Life itself is defined by challenges; in fact, they make like interesting. No one will have it all so rosy, even the religious icons like Jesus and Muhammad didn't, and being a person is how you're able to handle those challenges.”

In order to steer clear of considering suicide someday, one should not define their happiness in relation to others. “Because you can be in the jungle and be happy, you can as well be in the city and be sad; whatever situation you find yourself, you should try to manipulate yourself to achieve your goals in it and move on. Suicide shouldn't be the last option; because it never is.”

Say no to Suicide… Say yes to Life….