One third of women and nearly two thirds of men who died by suicide in the last 15 years utilized their access to a firearm as the means to take their own lives. In states with the highest rates of gun ownership, men are nearly four times as likely to take their own lives with a firearm, while women are eight times more likely.
What is it about guns? The fact is that firearms are not the most common method by which people attempt suicide. They are simply the most lethal. Drug overdose – which is the most common means of attempt – is lethal in less than 3% of cases. Firearms are lethal 85% of the time. With this information in mind, it is abundantly clear that access to lethal means should be a significant aspect of any serious effort to eliminate suicide in Wichita.
Because of my own struggle with suicidal depression, the wisdom of becoming a gun owner myself was not a decision that I made lightly. After I brought it home, I created a plan to limit my own access. My neighbor knows that someday, I might bring it over to him to hold onto for a few days. And I’ve extended that same offer to him. While I’ve not yet taken advantage of this plan, the knowledge that I have the ability to get my weapon out of my home for a few days lightens my emotional load. This plan in and of itself is not a means of addressing my mental illness. It’s just a way of keeping me alive long enough to do so.
