Why doctors kill themselves

[IThinkImTurningJapanese]

 

[Hip]

This 2015 article states that "year after year, both dentist and doctor remain among the occupations with the highest suicide rates."

I've long held a theory as to why that is: both doctors and dentists have a greater exposure to viruses and other microbes from the patients that they treat; and since mental health conditions such as depression are being increasingly linked to immune activation in the brain (brain inflammation), these pathogens that doctors and dentists pick up may cause weakened mental health by the way that they tax the immune system.

I have personal experience of this: the virus that I caught in 2003 (that later appeared to trigger my ME/CFS) initially induced symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder, depression, anhedonia and decreased stress tolerance among others. These same virally-induced mental health symptoms appeared not only in me, but in several of the 30+ people who caught my virus.

Incubation period, symptoms and blood tests suggest my virus is coxsackievirus B4, which as we know, is one of the enteroviruses that can form chronic long-term non-cytolytic (defective) infections. My website here describes these mental symptoms my virus produced in me and other people.


Doctors are exposed to a lot of stress and long working hours: in an increasing complex high-tech medical system, and with patients becoming more demanding, being a doctor is not easy.

Add to that a virus like the one I caught, which leads to reduced stress tolerance and anxiety, plus depression and anhedonia, and you can see how suicidal thoughts may emerge.

Anhedonia in particular has a particularly high risk of suicide. Anhedonia (the loss of the brain's ability to drive pleasure or reward from life's normally enjoyable activities) is a sub-symptom of depression; anhedonia may or may not be present in depression, but when it is present, research shows that suicide becomes more likely. My virus caused some degree of mild anhedonia in almost everyone who caught it.

 

[IThinkImTurningJapanese]

I've long held a theory as to why that is: both doctors and dentists have a greater exposure to viruses and other microbes, coming from the patients that they treat; and since mental health conditions such as depression are being increasingly linked to immune activation in the brain (brain inflammation),...

I think you may be right about this.

As you know, I take a TCM preparation that is a known antiviral, antibiotic, and anti-inflammatory medication. I have experienced more freedom from depression while using this medication, than ever before with SSRI's.

 

[Hip]

I have experienced more freedom from depression while using this medication, than ever before with SSRI's.

What is the name of the TCM formula, may I ask?

 

[alkt]

I think the problem being highlighted by the video is actually institutionalised bullying it is rife in all work places because people have always turned a blind eye to it . you only have to look at bullying in schools everyone turned a blind eye towards that not even recognising it as a problem until more and more suicides of minors were attributed to constant verbal and physical abuse . since there is still limited intervention in our education system and the law refuses to intervene in what I call assaults by minors against other minors . I think it will be an ongoing problem for generations to come .unless great strides in education of the general public makes bullying socially unacceptable anywhere and that includes politics civilised people can disagree on many thing but it is not necessary to belittle or threaten and humiliate people just because you have different opinions or ways of doing things.

 

[IThinkImTurningJapanese]

What is the name of the TCM formula, may I ask?

Absolutely, it's a custom preparation.

Aconitum carmichaelii
Poria Sclerotium
Ginseng
Ginger
Licorice (Non-deglycyrrhizinated)

Don't try this at home.

The aconite will kill you if it's not processed properly, it's a famous poison (Monkshood). I have to have regular blood tests and monitoring by my physician to get this substance.

 

[percyval577]

I think the problem being highlighted by the video is actually institutionalised bullying it is rife in all work places because people have always turned a blind eye to it . ... in schools everyone turned a blind eye towards ... since there is still limited intervention in our education system and the law refuses to intervene ... I think it will be an ongoing problem for generations to come . ...

Yes. There is a lack of being "cultured". And institutions might be given detrimental concepts.
Nevertheless I think laws are only of limited might here. Eg the older generations are putting to less "sense" in the pupils and then some knee-jerk reactions are taking place once again, but in a modern enviroment now, with more personal freedom. The "greatest" difficulty might be to care now for things that were suggesting itself. (Leading to and containing some joke of being). Instead of that everybody and even everything is demanding something.

In respect of doctors.

A. Being a doctor is not easy. You are treating other people, and mistakes are always in the range of acts (and a doctor will do mistakes of course -).
I know a surgeon since I was a child, and he has just this funny balance to do it properly. It´s like a bold mountain climber, who need to know very well that every step may be his last one, and who has all confidence that he wont step for a last time. So "knowing about the possibility to fail" and "having the confidence not to fail" is reaching high in being a doctor. I couldnt be a doctor, but this retired surgeon I know still "is" a doctor.

B. Then there is the - wrong - demand often coming from our society to be "someone" all on your own, which is not human like (rather). Bullying comes along trying to be the impossible. But already old Platon knew:
It´s the crowd of pupils who make the teacher a teacher, and it´s the teacher who makes the pupils pupils. There are these magic teachers who are able to conduct the crowd, aren´t they?
It´s the female who makes the male a male, and it´s the male who makes the female a female. Well, this last one might be a silly exception.
It´s the patient who makes the doctor a doctor, and it´s the doctor who makes the patient a patient. ... Well, not in my experience time after time -

A. I´ve been in a canteen for students of psychology for a few times, and there was always the attitude around: "We are in charge for the most important. Therfore we will not be really questionable." (despite the fact that this empirical science is often handling indeed with weak stuff, easily guessing into the uncertain, he?). Comparable attitudes can also be found sticking in neurologists (despite the still counting fact that the brain is most complicate and difficult to look in) and philosophers (despite some insight that the most important always vanishes away).
In fact, everybody refuses to be "questionable". That´s only natural because we all are making for the success, aren´t we? But to refuse to be "questionable" may be mindclosing.

I think everybody needed to prepare not to recognize himself as a given but as a movement that ever will be acting and searching for stableness to build up out of the uncertain. This insight might help to avoid suicide and to stay mentally away from a not well enough conceptualized society.