Older Men And Sucide

A new article published by Silvia Sara Canetto at Colorado State University looks into why older, white men are at the greatest risk of suicide. Canetto speculates that older white men may be "less psychologically equipped" to deal with the challenges aging.

I did not purchase the actual study so I am not sure how scientifically valid her speculation is, but one statement in particular I find curious - Canetto states that men "are less likely to experience widowhood and have better physical health and fewer disabilities than older women." I presume men are less likely to experience widowhood because they die younger than women. Personally, I would classify death as worse physical health than being alive.

Although I have not found any good studies that have looked into he matter, my guess is that one of the causes of higher rates of suicide in men is that men are, on average, treated more unjustly than women by the judicial system when it comes to divorce. Although the number of women paying alimony is growing, 95+ percent of the time men pay it. Often, as I have oft stated, in cases similar to mine where
despite the fact that my ex-wife divorced me, the Court appointed custody evaluator determined she was not the primary caregiver to the children, an employment evaluation determined she could make just as much money as me, strong evidence that she committed perjury and absolute evidence her lawyer lied in court, my ex-wife was awarded massive permanent alimony that will go on until the day I die. I cannot ever retire nor can I remarry as that would oblige my new wife to pay alimony to my ex-wife should I become disabled.

I strongly suspect that once men and women are treated equally by the judicial system when it comes to divorce and criminal behavior by lawyers and judges no longer tolerated, suicide for both men and women as well the children of divorced parents will be greatly reduced. Given that the suicide rate in the United States is twice the the murder rate, it is unfortunate that these issues are not getting more attention.

I have discussed suicide and divorce on several other occasions.