Thoughts such as “find a scapegoat” or “go down together” must be treated as a medical emergency: leave the scene, hand over car keys and knives to someone else, and call 12356.
The window between the moment these thoughts arise and any attempt to act on them is very brief. Among 82 people who survived a suicide attempt, 47.6% reported that no more than 10 minutes elapsed from the first appearance of such thoughts to the attempt itself. Therefore, the priority is not to “figure things out” intellectually, but to create physical distance — one step at a time — between oneself and steering wheels, knives, gas valves, or ropes, thereby surviving those crucial ten minutes. After that, calling 12356 is essential.
There is no monetary cost. The difficulty lies in admittin…
The time gap between the emergence of these thoughts and actual action is indeed short. Interviews conducted w…
There is no monetary cost. The difficulty lies in admitting that something is amiss right now and in handing over control of potentially dangerous items to another person.
The time gap between the emergence of these thoughts and actual action is indeed short. Interviews conducted within three days of hospitalization with those 82 individuals showed that 47.6% acted within ten minutes of first having such thoughts. A ten‑year systematic review indicates growing evidence that restricting access to lethal means reduces suicide rates; for instance, after tighter controls on painkillers, related suicides fell by 43%. Installing protective barriers at popular suicide sites cut deaths by 86% (ranging from 79% to 91%). Creating that brief physical separation is precisely what gives people a chance to survive. 12356 is the nationwide mental‑health helpline, operating at least 18 hours per day throughout the country as of May 1, 2025.
Deisenhammer EA 等 (2009). The duration of the suicidal process: how much time is left for intervention between consideration and accomplishment of a suicide attempt? Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.4088/JCP.07m03904；Zalsman G 等 (2016). Suicide prevention strategies revisited: 10-year systematic review. Lancet Psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2215-0366(16)30030-X；国家卫生健康委 (2024). 关于应用「12356」全国统一心理援助热线电话号码的通知（国卫医政函〔2024〕259 号）. https://www.gov.cn/zhengce/zhengceku/202412/content_6994470.htm
Open source linkThis grade is assigned because both pieces of evidence originate from suicide‑research literature and have not been directly tested in contexts involving impulses to harm others. The Deisenhammer study involved only 82 participants at a single hospital. When feeling unwell, avoid driving or taking on duties that require responsibility for others’ safety; it is better to hand over those duties first. For information on self‑harm thoughts, see Section 1, Item 25 (calling 12356 when suicidal thoughts arise). Guidance on actions during periods of low mood can be found in Section 3, Item 19.