Although written for Freedom, our original support group which is now closed, this discussion applies equally to all stop smoking support groups, including Turkeyville. It is important to understand that quit smoking support groups are not suicide hotlines.

If anyone ever has suicidal thoughts they need to contact a suicide hotline or get local immediate professional help.   If a post is ever made at a Turkeyville that hints in any way that a member is experiencing any kind of suicidal ideation, we'll have no choice but to immediately remove it, and we contact and strongly urge them to  immediately seek emergency mental health assistance.

  

Neither our support group or our members are qualified to render these kinds of services. The greatest disservice we could do is to keep a person here reading at the time that they should be seeking live professional support.

This link is to "Depression Basics" by the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health. If depressed get help.

The following links are to suicide and crisis hotlines:

• African Crisis Centers
• Asian Crisis Centers
• Australia Lifeline
• Canada Suicide Prevention Service
• European Crisis Centers
• New Zealand Suicide Crisis Helpline
• South American Crisis Centers
• UK NHS Suicide Helplines
• U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

Why it's important that we share this message

Back in 2001, I created a string at the Freedom from Nicotine board titled "Normal depressive reaction or a real organic depressive episode" (see the page Resources regarding mental health issues page for the main information covered in that string).

At the time, I saw depression as an important issue to cover on the site, for as I talked about in the article Understanding the emotional loss experienced when quitting smoking, it is normal for people when they are first quitting smoking to experience a certain degree of depression.

I always wanted our readers to be aware though that while quitting can cause some degree of what is normally a mild form of depression, that Life goes on without smoking and if a depression is severe or lasts longer than a few days, it should be professionally assessed. The Emotional Loss Experienced from Quitting Smoking explored the various issues involved in depth.

As should be obvious by the creation of that string, we always wanted our readers to be alert and aware of issues surrounding depression. It was important back then, but in today’s environment, it is even more important. In a way, my greatest concern back then was for people who had ongoing problems with depression even when they smoked, or people who were medicated for years for depression and then, because of the fact that their medications were adjusted around their physiology as smokers, they may now have a resurgence of symptoms because Medication adjustments were now necessary for them as ex-smokers.

Today though, the issue of depression being discussed at a stop smoking site is even more important than in the past, and especially the issue of suicidal ideation and possible suicidal actions that can accompany the depression reaction. The reason for this is that in recent years, some prescription medications that people are taking for smoking cessation, as well as medications people are taking for other unrelated conditions, are being linked to suicidal ideation, attempts and actual suicides.

This creates a situation where people who may be having these feelings from medications they are taking or from actual organic mental health issues, may minimize the early symptoms, confusing them with the more common minor depressive feelings that can happen while quitting. This can result in a dangerous practice of people putting off seeking professional help when it may be very needed.

While our members are going cold turkey and not likely to experience these reactions from simply quitting smoking, we likely have readers who are using quitting medications who might be at risk. Also, as noted above, people who are quitting smoking may be on medications for other problems that may be presenting a risk and again, writing off such feeling to simple cessation is a mistake.

Again though, whatever the causation of such feelings, professional assistance needs to be sought out.

Joel

Related reading that explains the reason why support groups should not be used for dealing with all of life's potential problems:

• How do I deal with ...