Am J Psychiatry 1994; 151:1815-1816
Copyright © 1994 by American Psychiatric Association
Grief and loss among Eskimos attempting suicide in western Alaska
RJ Gregory
Community Mental Health, Norton Sound Regional Hospital, Nome, Alaska.
Data were collected prospectively from psychiatric evaluations performed on
53 consecutive Eskimos in the Bering Strait region who attempted suicide.
Depressive diagnoses were common (N = 49). Thirty- seven (70%) of the
attempts were preceded by a recent interpersonal loss. Sixty percent of the
patients had lost a parent during childhood. Poor affective relatedness,
especially around issues of loss, was noted in most of the patients. Thus,
both multiple losses and limited grieving mechanisms may be important risk
factors for attempted suicide in this population.
