Researchers warn of the reality of a phenomenon called “birthday blues”: people attempt suicide on this day and certain dates are more at risk than others.
- The stress caused by birthdays would strongly contribute to the increase in heart attacks and suicides that occur on this special date.
- Several famous people died on their birthday: actress Ingrid Bergman, artist Raphael and playwright William Shakespeare.
It is not a myth but a real disease: the “birthday blues“, already observed with an increased suicide rate on these dates. Recently, psychiatrists investigated the case of an Asian man in his 60s who repeatedly attempted suicide when he aged a year. Their work has been published in the journal Psychiatry Research Case Reports. They believe that his story illustrates the existence of this controversial disorder.
Some birthdays are more at risk of suicide than others
According to Dr. Chih-Yu Chang, lead author of the study, and his colleagues, this phenomenon could be explained by several factors. Birthdays could indeed serve as “reminder of mortality” and “encourage individuals to reflect on failures in their lives“.
It is this mental state which pushed the married sexagenarian, probably autistic, to try to commit the irreparable on several occasions: at his 52 years, 58 years and 60 years, can we read in Mail Online which picks up the story. These ages are not insignificant: “certain milestone birthdays may increase the risk of suicide for those affected by the birthday blues“said the team which designated the 40th, 50th, 60th and 70th anniversaries as “bearers of a more symbolic meaning than the others“.
However, “any date with personal or social significance” can be a risk factor. For the victim, for example, being 60 years old is culturally significant and symbolizes “completeness“, they wrote.
Avoid suicide on birthday with medical care
The man, who was being treated at National Cheng Kung University Hospital in Taiwan, told doctors: “I want to die on my birthday no matter what“. He was treated, received cognitive behavioral therapy, medication, and participated in music therapy and occupational therapy sessions.
The team said his birthday was very hard on the patient: he remained curled up in bed, shaking, refusing to meet or talk to anyone. The next day, his “behavior has improved“He even thanked the staff for having him.”out of the gates of death“, according to Dr. Chih-Yu Chang and his team for whom autistic character traits can also contribute to the birthday blues.
Indeed, cognitive inflexibility, a characteristic trait of people with the autism spectrum, may indeed increase the tendency to suicidal ideation”due to increased rumination“, they explain.
Beyond suicides, the death rate would be higher on this holiday with an increase in the number of heart attacks of 18.6% and fatal falls (+ 44%), which shows that we have more likely to die on our birthday than on any other day of the year.
