Mother's suicide gives Psychiatrist purpose in her profession

There is an interesting article in the May 21, 2010 issue of Psychiatric News about psychiatrist Nancy Rappaport whose mother killed herself when Nancy was 4 years old.

Here is a snippet from the article:

A child and adolescent psychiatrist transforms a quest to understand her mother's untimely death into a tool to educate others about the impact of suicide on those left behind.

When she was 4 years old, according to family lore, Nancy Rappaport, M.D., was the last person to see her mother alive.

You can read the whole article by clicking here.

I have known several of my mental health colleagues who have killed themselves. Over my 43 years, I can think of 5 or 6.

I also worked as a Psychiatric Assignment Officer in three urban hospital emergency rooms for 18 years from 1972 to 1990. I estimate that I did over 14,000 suicide evaluations during that time. I learned some interesting things from all those years of engaging in that kind of practice. I will share the lessons later.

At the moment, take care of yourself and seek out good supervision to keep yourself mentally balanced and enjoying The Work.