Editorial written by The Seattle Times Editorial Board
While many people will be enjoying the next few weeks surrounded by friends and family, many of our neighbors will be isolated, especially those in their senior years.
This isolation can contribute to depression and other disorders, which in turn can contribute to the rising levels of suicide or suicide attempts among the senior population.
A Seattle Times report revealed that Washington seniors 70 and older have experienced an uptick in the number of deaths by suicide over the last few years, while younger age groups have seen a drop in number and rate of suicides.
In fact, nationally, Americans 75 and over had the highest rate of suicide of any age group in 2021 and 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And the number of men in this age group died by suicide twice as often as males aged 15 to 24.
This should alarm all of us, especially this time of year when holidays can be emotional, stressful, and, for some, depressing. There are several contributing factors to those statistics; isolation and grief are just two.
A study by AARP found that one in three women over 60 reported feeling sometimes or often lonely, and about a quarter of them said they sometimes or often feel isolated.
“For those who attempt and those who (die by) suicide, many feel their lives are over — spouses have died, children are gone, and they are cut off from the world and are very lonely and alone,” said Ronnie Cunningham, a licensed psychologist.
Coping with grief can also affect seniors differently, especially during the holidays, said Sherry Blake, a licensed clinical psychologist and content creator for AARP.
“Grief doesn’t take a break during the holidays. Holidays are full of sights and sound and smells and rituals that awaken deep memories and emotional responses,” Blake said. “When you’re grieving, all of your emotional triggers are on high alert.”
Here are some ways you can help your neighbors, friends, and other seniors in your life navigate isolation and grief:
- Check in (call) or check up on (visit) seniors in your life.
- Introduce yourself to elderly neighbors and develop relationships with whatever boundaries you desire to set.
- Help make them feel useful. “Late-in-life transitions — retirement, deaths — can make people feel useless. Seek their advice. Invite them to dinner and have them prepare a dish. Feeling useful helps,” Cunningham said.
- Learn to recognize depression and offer resources to those in need. “Seek treatment when you notice there’s an interference in that person’s functioning,” Blake said.
And take care of yourself as well. Prepare for your own social life before your senior years, just as you prepare financially.
