TW: how to talk to T about suicidal thoughts?

So tomorrow I am finally going to talk to my T about my suicidal thoughts. I am just not sure how to put it in words. I am worried she won’t believe me. Can anyone give me advice on how to get the words out that make sense?

Hi Crook32. Talking about suicide with a therapist presents a problem because the therapist is obligated to make sure you are safe.

If you are only talking about suicidal thoughts and you have no intention of acting on these thoughts, then it might be wise to preface this discussion with therapist with your intention not to act on these thoughts but trying to find a way to deal with these invasive thoughts that do not seem like your own.

You might ask them if any of the meds you are on have a side affect of promoting suicidal thoughts or you could call your pharmacist and ask them. There are some medications with that side affect so it is worth checking out.

If your therapist is your prescriber they may be able to make med suggestions.

I would not worry that your therapist would not believe you, so I would not recommend you telling them more than is actually happening. This could result in them assuming you are not safe and need medical attention to prevent the suicide risk.

You also might ask a general question, like What kinds of meds or environmental factors might trigger suicidal thoughts, even though you have no intention of harming yourself in any way.
@CANDC

I can pretty much guarantee your T will believe you and take you seriously. I can't remember if my T brought up suicidal thoughts/feelings or if I did, but I can talk about them frankly knowing she takes it seriously, but also can assess the risk of actual suicidal behaviors. Maybe you can write out what you want to say and hand it to your T or read it to them? I do that when it is something I don't think I can get out verbally.

I have had several T’s and all had different responses, some felt more supportive to me than others but in hind sight I can see where they were all trying to help. I am learning with my current T that knowing what I need from him helps me find words and actually say them. I cycle in and out of having suicidal thoughts and am currently back “in”. I am very clear with my T that they are thoughts and I would let him know if they were more than thoughts. As long as it is thoughts we talk about it like a stronger form of any other feeing. Where is it coming from and what is it trying to tell me. Being able to talk about it with T like this has really strengthened our relationship.

I talk to my T all the time about being suicidal. I just talk about it. Like it is talking about the weather or whatever. But because I have them so often, when I am trying to tell her that it is more serious, she doesn't always see it. Sometimes it just helps to write it out and hand a note to the T. But be prepared to answer follow up questions because they want to know if you are in imminent danger to yourself.