BY AMY ROSE HARTE
A "SIGNIFICANT" rise in the number of suicides in Donegal lately is worrying mental health practitioners and addiction counsellors.
The figure is reported to have doubled over the last year, while a cluster of suicide-related deaths over the past few weeks is also of great concern.
Cuts in investment for support services, drug and alcohol abuse, and recession-related problems have been mooted as some of the reasons for the surge.
The Donegal News has also learned that mental health and addiction services in the county are struggling to meet a massive rise in referrals lately.
The Donegal branch of People with Disabilities in Ireland (PWDI) has reported a 30 per cent increase in referrals from people with mental health difficulties over the past 18 months. They have attributed the jump to an increase in drug and alcohol abuse, and a greater social acceptance of mental illness.
Father James Sweeney, an addiction counsellor in White Oaks, said he is worried about the "significant" rise in suicides in Donegal.
"We have noticed it over the last year. There's been a fairly significant rise in suicides and suicide-related deaths. But very often they go unnoticed and unreported to the general public," he told the Donegal News.
"It's a worrying trend, there's no doubt about that. Through dealing with a number of cases myself, either directly or indirectly, I would certainly say the number has doubled," he said.
The rise can be attributed to the recession, he said, when more people experience a greater sense of helplessness and despair.
"With the recession, people losing their jobs, and addictions, I think there's a whole combination of issues that are putting immense pressure on people and putting them into a place where they feel helpless and are despairing. Very often they just cant take anymore and ultimately they feel this is their way out," said Fr Sweeney.
A lack of funding has also been highlighted as a major problem.
"For example they're [the Government] are putting 4.2 million into the Lisbon Treaty for the second time in 12 months. That's almost 8.5 million altogether spent telling us about it and you can't get practically anything to help people in difficulty in the Northwest," he said.
His comments precede the launch of the National Suicide Research Foundation's latest report which is due out on Monday and deals with county-by-county figures.
According to CSO figures published last month, there were 17 suicides in Donegal in 2006, the same figure reported for 2005.
Fr Sweeney has also blamed a greater abuse of drugs and alcohol to the worrying rise in mental health problems, a view echoed by the PWDI.
James McClean, spokesperson for the Donegal branch of PWDI, said his service is "swamped" with people looking for help.
The PWDI helps people with mental health difficulties get back into the workplace, among other things.
"There has been a huge increase in mental heath referrals right across the trend," he said.
"The whole area of mental health difficulties is increasing anyway because of alcohol and drug abuse which leads to a lot of people developing mental health difficulties".
"It could also relate to the fact that the stigma attached to having a mental illness meant many people would have shied away from services in the past. Although there is still some stigma, people are more accepting of it now," he added.
The HSE's Suicide Prevention Officer in Donegal was not available for comment at the time of going to press.
If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the Samaritans on 1850609090 or Aware on 1890303302.
For more see the Donegal News online pdf editions
