Transcending suicidality: Re-vitalizing worthiness

This book draws on a study involving young men in Ireland who were suicidal and had attended mental health services. It describes the profound ambivalence they experienced in their torturous pull between life and death when in suicidal crisis. Dr Gordon outlines the journey they took in resolving this tension to enable them to transcend suicidality. For these young men, this involved re-vitalizing their worthiness. While this was a complex and unique process, the author draws out significant common patterns whereby they were able to achieve a sense of their value as individuals and accept that they were deserving of life. Dr Gordon traces pivotal turning points on their journey, highlighting the impact of professional and day-to-day social encounters. The enhancing effects of validation and the hindering effects of invalidation are described. The author also examines the role of stigma and self-concealment in adding to the complexity, unpredictability and uncertainty facing people experiencing suicidality and those supporting them.